Development and Validation of a Scale to Measure

The criterion issues in the area of outcome research in psychotherapy were addressr-d and reviewed. Through this review of previous outcome research, it was determined that three basic criterion areas related best to tuaditional outcome variables such as therapist and community informant ratings, length of stay, and rehospitalization. These three criteria were: (1) satisfaction with self, (2) satisfaction with interpersonal relations, and (3) satisfaction vith the therapeutic outcomes. With this impetus, an eighteen item scale was developed to measure the present state, and the magnitude and direction of change of the three criterion areas. The scale was administered to eighty-six former physchiatric patients f i Fort Logan Mental Health Center. The scale was found to be-ely reliable and internally consistant. As a partial validation ke scale, a sub-sample of community informants ' ratings on the teatment effectiveness scale was correlated with patient ratings. High correlations indicated partial validation of the instrument. (Author) Cr% (2