| Abstract: | Contends that research designs in which psychotherapy treatments are compared to placebo conditions were derived from analogies with chemotherapy research. However, chemotherapy and psychotherapy research efforts are complementary rather than analogous. Chemotherapy placebos are delivered to eliminate the psychological variables that psychotherapy researchers attempt to explain. Psychotherapy treatments are analogous to chemotherapy placebos, rather than to chemotherapy treatments. It is suggested that chemotherapy artifacts, such as client outcome expectancies, cannot be viewed as de facto artifacts of psychotherapy research. It is further suggested that placebo groups should be eliminated from psychotherapy research. (49 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved) |
