Association of machine-learning-rated supportive counseling skills with psychotherapy outcome.

ABSTRACT:

Objective

This study applied a machine-learning-based skill assessment system to investigate the association between supportive counseling skills (empathy, open questions, and reflections) and treatment outcomes. We hypothesized that higher empathy and higher use of open questions and reflections would be associated with greater symptom reduction.

Method

We used a data set with 2,974 sessions, 610 clients, and 48 therapists collected from a university counseling center, which included 845,953 rated therapist statements. Client outcome was routinely monitored by the Counseling Center Assessment of Psychological Symptoms Instruments. Therapists' skills were measured via computer by a bidirectional-long-short-term-memory-based system that rated use of supportive counseling skil

SUBMITTER: Zhang X 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11804870 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature