Supportive interventions as a moderator of the association between interpretation and middle-phase outcome

Numerous psychotherapeutic models stress the importance of combining supportive techniques alongside interpretative interventions, yet hardly any empirical evidence has been provided in support of this claim. The present study examined the moderating effect of supportive interventions on the association between interpretations and middle-phase treatment outcome. Three sessions from the middle phase of 33 short-term integrative treatments (99 sessions in total) were coded using the Helping Skills System (Hill, 2009), and at the beginning of each session, outcome was assessed using the Outcome Questionnaire. We found a significant interaction, such that interpretations accompanied by higher levels of supportive interventions were associated with improvements in patients' psychological functioning, whereas interpretations accompanied by lower levels of supportive interventions were associated with deterioration in functioning. These findings underscore the importance of supportive interventions in shaping the association between interpretive work and patient outcomes and inform clinical understanding of the balance between different therapeutic techniques. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).