Changes and factors in mental health functioning of adolescents in therapy : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Psychology at Massey University (Palmerston North), New Zealand

Abstract

To explore factors that might contribute to changes in mental health functioning in adolescents with mental health problems seen at a Child, Adolescent, and Family Mental Health Service (CAFMHS), the present study examined changes in scores on the Clinical Outcomes of Routine Evaluation (CORE) and the Health of the Nation Outcome Scales for Children and Adolescents (HoNOSCA) over a 3 month period. Ten female and 5 male adolescents completed the CORE and 7 of their respective therapists assessed their mental health on HoNOSCA, before and after 3 months of intervention. Life events and factors within therapy during the period of the study were assessed through interviews with clients and their respective therapists. Analysis of the data indicated that overall the mental health of the participants did improve. No significant correlations between clients' and clinicians' assessment of therapeutic factors were found. The hypotheses that focused on factors that might have contributed to the changes were not supported, possibly due to the small number of participants. Limitations of the study and future directions were discussed.