Psychotherapy and results

A global overview of scientific production 2001-2011

Abstract

It is necessary to know the efficacy and the eff ectiveness of psychotherapyoffered to the public for constant theoretical and technical improvement.The objective of this article was to investigate the scientific findingsregarding the outcomes of psychotherapy, offering an overview of this production.We performed a systematic search in PsycINFO, Lilacs and Indexpsidatabases between 2001 and 2011 with the descriptors “Psychotherapy”and “result” or “outcome”. 707 articles were found and, after refinement, 312articles remained and were divided into three categories: empirical research,literature review and clinical material presentation. The review showedgrowth of world output regarding the results of psychotherapy, mainly inthe form of empirical articles, characterized by methodological rigor. Themain sources of the articles are the United States and Europe. Brazil standsout among Latin American countries, although the Indexpsi database doesnot present many publications of this nature. The largest concentration ofarticles focuses on the theoretical approach of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapyand is directed to Axis I Mental Disorders.