Patterns of response and non-response in interpersonal psychotherapy: a qualitative study

This qualitative analysis of response and non-response in interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT) was conducted on sessions that had been audiotaped for a randomized clinical trial designed to identify patient predictors of treatment response to psychotherapy for depression. A thematic analysis was conducted on ten sets of IPT sessions (120 hours) to explore the process of change. Analysis of these sessions revealed a pattern associated with improvement in mood. This pattern involved struggling with the symptoms; deconstructing interpersonal patterns; altering the pattern; and reconstructing a sense of self. Because the analysis revealed that not all participants' transcripts showed an engagement with this pattern, a further analysis revealed characteristics associated with response and non-response. These characteristics were: an ability to engage in multiple perspectives, an awareness of others' feelings, a desire to make change, a sense of self-responsibility, an ability to use a range of communication strategies, a desire to act cooperatively, and an ability to engage with the therapist.