Evaluation of therapeutic outcome: some reflections on methodology

Problems connected with choice of outcome-criteria are discussed. Some results from an outcome study of student-conducted dynamic psychotherapies are presented. The discussion is focused on discrepancies between subjective data and more objective measures, as reflected in Rorschach test results. It is claimed that in order to give a meaningful interpretation of these discrepancies, a conception of hierarchically ordered structures of personality is needed. Such a conception also seems to represent a necessary supplement both to Malan's psychodynamic hypothesis and to outcome-research applying multidimensional outcome measures.