Short-term dynamically oriented psychotherapy: A review and meta-analysis

Twenty-six studies of the effectiveness of short-term dynamic therapy (STDT) were subjected to two meta-analyses. Effect sizes (ES) obtained by each method were similar. STDT attained average ESs of 71 and 34, relative to waitlist and minimal treatment groups, respectively. When studies using psychosomatic patients were excluded, STDT achieved an ES of 85, relative to waitlist groups. We found no evidence that STDT is superior or inferior to other forms of psychotherapy at posttreatment, although it evidenced a slight superiority at long-term followup assessment. There was, in addition, evidence that studies employing manuals or therapists trained in STDT produced larger ESs than those that did not.