Factor structure and validity of the therapy process observational coding system for child psychotherapy-alliance...

Area of Science:

• Child and Adolescent Psychology
• Psychotherapy Research
• Clinical Psychology

Background:

• The youth alliance is a crucial factor in psychotherapy outcomes.
• Existing observer-rated measures for youth alliance may have limitations.
• The Therapy Process Observational Coding System for Child Psychotherapy-Alliance scale (TPOCS-A) was developed to address this gap.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the factor structure and psychometric properties of the observer-rated TPOCS-A.
• To determine if TPOCS-A is a reliable and valid measure of child-therapist alliance.
• To assess the potential of TPOCS-A in youth psychotherapy research.

Main Methods:

• Exploratory factor analysis of TPOCS-A ratings from 52 youth with anxiety disorders.
• Psychometric analyses including interrater reliability, internal consistency, and convergent/divergent validity.
• Comparison with child- and therapist-reported alliance measures.

Main Results:

• A one-factor solution was supported, consistent with previous alliance research.
• TPOCS-A demonstrated good interrater reliability, internal consistency, and validity.
• The findings suggest TPOCS-A is a psychometrically sound measure.

Conclusions:

• The TPOCS-A shows promise as a valuable tool for measuring youth alliance in psychotherapy.
• A unidimensional alliance construct may be relevant for youth psychotherapy.
• Further research with larger, diverse samples is recommended to confirm findings.