Changes in OPD-CA Axis Structure During Inpatient Psychodynamic Treatment of Adolescents Suffering from Comorbid Disorders of Conduct and Emotions

Abstract

In a randomized controlled clinical trial (RCT) we evaluated an inpatient psychodynamic treatment for adolescents suffering from mixed disorders of conduct and emotions. The sample consisted of severely impaired adolescents with remarkable deficits regarding psychic structure. The current study wanted to examine if the manualized treatment did not only reduce symptoms but also enhance the structural level of the patients. The axis structure of the Operationalized Psychodynamic Diagnostics in Childhood and Adolescence (OPD-CA) was used to assess the structural level of N = 46 adolescent inpatients. To examine differences between the patients‘ structural level at the beginning and at the end of inpatient treatment we conducted a repeated measures ANOVA. The overall score as well as the three subscores of the axis structure improved significantly during inpatient treatment. The corresponding effect sizes were large (η(2) = .29 to .47). The inpatient psychodynamic treatment led to significant improvements regarding symptomatology as well as psychic structure. However, further studies with larger sample size and control group data should be conducted to confirm these results.