Patient Factors in Treatment

[Page 2491]Patient factors refer to characteristics of the patient that influence the course and effectiveness of psychotherapy interventions. This can be taken one step further, whereby once these patient factors have been identified and applied to a particular patient, the corresponding therapist has the opportunity to apply appropriate interventions. Diagnosis is a predefined set of variables and characteristics that convey the shared symptoms of a group of individuals with similar presenting problems. It, thus, can guide general objectives but is not particularly sensitive to individual idiosyncrasies. Nonetheless, its descriptions can determine the symptoms by which change can be assessed, but it does not lend much understanding to the best course of psychotherapy for a particular patient. The patient factors suggested in this entry are moderating ...