[Efficacy studies in the field of psychotherapy--psychoanalytical and psychodynamic psychology--for children and adolescents: a survey]

Abstract

An overview is given of the development of efficacy research in the field of psychoanalytically justified procedures for psychotherapy for children and adolescents in German-speaking countries and internationally. It is ascertained that there exists a shortfall in the empirical research on analytical psychotherapy for children and adolescents in comparison with other psychotherapy processes in the field of psychotherapy for children and adolescents. The available studies nevertheless give evidence for the efficacy of analytical psychotherapy for children and adolescents. The available catamneses also give a good naturalistic portrayal of the reality of treatment under delivery conditions. An allocation and evaluation of the individual studies in accordance with the application areas and minimum requirements set by the Wissenschaftliche Beirat (scientific advisory board) according to 11 PsychThG (Psychotherapeutengesetz = law for psychotherapy). More recent studies, which present a combination of waiting control group design and naturalistic field portrayal, establish the efficacy of analytical psychotherapy for children and adolescents under supply conditions. The disorder-specific studies on depressive, anxiety and behavioural disorders (Horn et al. 2005, Kronmüller et al. 2005 and Winkelmann et al. 2005) give the first and only controlled and naturalistic evidence of the efficacy of analytical psychotherapy for children and adolescents in outpatient care in Germany.