Department of Psychology, MSB Medical School Berlin, Germany.
Heidelberg, Germany.
J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci. 2019 Apr 12;74(4):620-624. doi: 10.1093/geronb/gbx078.
The objective of this study was to analyze how psychotherapists' treatment attitudes and decisions depend on a patient's age.
A sample of psychotherapists-in-training (N = 97) responded to questions concerning a naturalistic case vignette of a female patient with symptoms of depression and anxiety. The patient was described as being either 79 or 47 years old.
Results revealed no evidence that psychotherapists-in-training had more negative treatment attitudes towards an older relative to a younger patient. However, the patient's age had an influence on participants' therapeutic approach. Specifically, psychotherapists-in-training recommended short- as opposed to long-term therapy, considered motivational clarification less important, and viewed clarifying techniques as less appropriate for an older patient.
The stereotype of the rigid and resigned old person appears to be an important and potentially problematic factor in psychotherapy. Interventions to help therapists to reflect on their individual representations of aging may increase the likelihood of successful psychotherapy.
本研究旨在分析心理治疗师的治疗态度和决策如何取决于患者的年龄。
一组接受培训的心理治疗师（N=97）回答了有关一位女性抑郁和焦虑症状患者自然案例的问题。该患者被描述为 79 岁或 47 岁。
结果并未表明心理治疗师对年长患者的治疗态度比对年轻患者更消极。但是，患者的年龄对参与者的治疗方法有影响。具体而言，心理治疗师培训生建议采用短期而非长期治疗，认为动机澄清不那么重要，并认为澄清技术对年长患者不太合适。
刻板印象认为老年人固执且顺从，这似乎是心理治疗中的一个重要且潜在的问题因素。干预措施可以帮助治疗师反思他们对衰老的个体看法，这可能会增加心理治疗成功的可能性。
