A Review of the Efficacy and Effectiveness of Cognitive-Behaviour Therapy and Short-Term Psychodynamic Therapy in the Treatment of Major Depression: Implications for Mental Health Social Work Practice

Abstract

A systematic review of the literature regarding the efficacy and effectiveness of cognitive-behaviour therapy and short-term psychodynamic therapy in the treatment of major depression in adults was conducted. This search of electronic databases (PsycArticles, PsycINFO, Social Services s and PsycLIT) was conducted between August and October 2011 and resulted in full text review of 13 publications. On balance the evidence, largely derived from randomised controlled trials, supported cognitive-behaviour therapy as the more efficacious treatment. The evidence for the efficacy of short-term psychodynamic therapy was somewhat fragmented due to the paucity of controlled studies, with the evidence base for short-term psychodynamic therapy relying heavily upon meta-analyses. There was comparable evidence for the effectiveness of cognitive-behaviour therapy and short-term psychodynamic therapy on the basis of standardised clinical outcome measures. More high-quality randomised controlled trials are required to assess the efficacy of short-term psychodynamic therapy for treating major depression, while the methodological challenges of meta-analyses need to be acknowledged where this methodology forms the primary evidence base for efficacy studies.