Mothers' therapeutic alliance and children outcome in a day hospital

This two-year prospective study in a French child psychiatry day hospital assesses relationship between therapeutic alliance and clinical progress. Thirty-three 3-10 year-old children (18 with pervasive developmental disorders and 15 with mixed behaviour disorders) were assessed regarding their symptom status and developmental progress, while receiving multi modal intervention package. Independently, the treatment staff assessed the therapeutic alliance with the parents by standardized ratings on the French modified Helping Alliance questionnaire from Luborsky. The statistical study shows that a mother's good therapeutic alliance correlate significantly with the social functioning improvement but not regarding the symptom status. As North-American therapeutic alliance adult's studies, this first child psychiatry unit study seems to show that the parent therapeutic alliance is a predictor factor of child outcome independently of age and pathological child status. (c) 2005 Elsevier SAS. Tous droits reserves.