Assessing the benefits of psychotherapy: the economic approach

Recent debate about the place of psychotherapy in the National Health Service, while emphasising the importance of economic evaluation, has concentrated almost exclusively on issues of clinical outcome. This paper argues that the debate has focussed on too narrow a definition of psychotherapy and too limited a view of the possible effects of psychotherapy, both good and bad. It reviews evidence concerning the demand and need for psychotherapy services in a number of clinical settings, and discusses the economic implications of the provision of such services. Economic studies of psychotherapy are reviewed and a conclusion drawn that it might be possible to justify the provision of psychotherapy services on economic grounds, but that considerably more research needs to be done in this area. The directions such future research might take are outlined.