Abstract
This study investigates the relationship between therapist techniques with patient and therapist ratings of session Depth (powerful, valuable, deep, full, and special). Eighty-three patients were admitted to a university-based community outpatient psychological clinic, and videotapes of an early treatment session were reliably rated by trained coders to identify techniques used by therapists. Overall amount of psychodynamic-interpersonal technique was found to have a significant positive correlation with patient-rated session Depth, and a trend toward significance was observed with therapist-rated session Depth. In addition, clinically relevant covariates (e.g., patient and clinician ratings of psychiatric severity, degree of Axis II pathology, and therapeutic alliance) of this session Depth and technique relationship were examined and found to have a nonsignificant impact.