Research Consortium

Project 3, Psychotherapy Process and Outcome Study
(1997-98)

Building on the success of these first two projects, The Research Consortium implemented a psychotherapy process/outcome study to investigate the impact of counseling services on the mental health concerns of college students. Students were recruited for the study during the 1997-98 school year when they came to the counseling centers for their initial appointment. The student agreed to participate by filling out a consent form and was then instructed to complete the Counseling Concerns Survey and the Stages of Change Measure before the first session. Before each subsequent individual therapy session, the client filled out the Outcome Questionnaire-45 (OQ-45). An optional, though highly recommended, measure that each center was encouraged to include is the Working Alliance Inventory completed by both the client and the therapist before the start of the fourth session of therapy. Six weeks after the date of termination, the student was mailed the OQ-45 and the Service Satisfaction Scale-30 as follow-up measures. Information about therapist theoretical orientation was obtained using the Coan Theoretical Orientation Survey. Data were obtained on 4,500 clients and 241 therapists across 42 centers.

Publications

Highlights of the Research Consortium Outcomes Project: November, 1998 (David J. Drum and Augustine Baron)

Dose-Effect Relationships in Brief Therapy (Matthew Draper, Judy Jennings, Augustine Baron, Ozgur Erdur, and Lavanya Shankar)

History of Parental Problem Drinking and Its Relationship with Help-Seeking College Students Distress Scores (Lavanya Shankar, Augustine Baron, Ozgur Erdur, and Matthew Draper)

Working Alliance & Treatment Outcome in Ethnically Similar and Dissimilar Client - Therapist Pairings (Ozgur Erdur, Stephanie Rude, Augustine Baron, Matthew Draper, and Lavanya Shankar)

The Relationship of Client Stages of Change to Retention, Working Alliance, and Outcome in Short-Term Therapy (Aaron B. Rochlen, Stephanie Rude, and Augustine Baron)

Counseling Utilization by Ethnic Minority Students (Lisa Kearney, Matthew Draper, and Augustine Baron)

Validation of OQ45 Scores (Natasha Veretvas, Lisa Kearney, and Augustine Baron)

Factor Analysis and Concurrent Validity of a University Counseling Center Presenting Problems Checklist (Matthew Draper, Judy Jennings, and Augustine Baron )

Baldwin, S.A. Wampold, B.E., & Imel, Z.E. (2007). Untangling the alliance-outcome correlation: Exploring the relative importance of therapist and patient variability in the alliance. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. 75(6) 842-852

Draper, M.R., Jennings, J., Baron, A., Erdur, O., & Shankar, L. (2002) Time-limited counseling outcome in a nationwide college counseling center sample. Journal of College Counseling, 22.

Erdur, O., Rude, S., & Baron, A (2003). Symptom improvement and length of treatment in ethnically similar and dissimilar client-therapist pairings. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 50(1), 52-58.

Erdur-Baker, O, Aberson, C.L., Draper, M.R., & Barrow, J.C. (2006). Nature and Severity of College Students' Psychological Concerns: A Comparison of Clinical and Non-Clinical National Samples. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 37(3), 317-323.

Kearney, L.K., Draper, M.R., & Augustin Baron, A. (2005). Counseling utilization by ethnic minority college students. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 11(3), 272�285.