Pluralistic Therapy for Depression
The aim of this small-scale, locally-based project was to generate pilot data that can be used to develop, and evaluate, a collaborative or ‘pluralistic’ approach to therapy (Cooper and Macleod 2011) in treating depression. The aim in this initial stage was to conduct a small-scale, practice-based research inquiry that can be used to test out a number of measures, instruments and methods associated with pluralistic practice – most of which are strategies for tailoring the therapeutic work more closely to the individual client - and to generate case data that can be used for publication, teaching and knowledge exchange purposes. It was also intended that findings generated from this initial research will be used to develop larger scale, funded research programmes. The research project involved three sites: Metanoia Institute, the University of Strathclyde, and the University of the West of England. The trial ran between autumn 2012 and December 2013, with 48 individuals assessed for participation, and 40 (83%) attending for two or more sessions. The key inclusion criterion was a score of ten or more on the PHQ-9 (Patient Health Questionnaire-9). Clients were offered up to 24 sessions of pluralistic therapy, delivered by trainee or practising counselling psychologists. The principal outcomes were proportion of assessed clients, at endpoint, indicating reliable recovery and clinically reliable improvement; baseline to endpoint effect sizes on the PHQ-9, GAD-7 (Generalised Anxiety Disorder-7) and Goal Assessment Form; and retention rates. The principal outcome findings from the study are compared against benchmark data from the UK’s Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) programme.
Further funding is currently sought for the next stage of research.