Preferences for treatment and provider characteristics in outpatient psychotherapy: Results from a discrete choice experiment

AI Summary

Respondents predominantly preferred individual, face-to-face therapy with shorter waiting times, and therapists who were female and more experienced.
Treatment setting carried greatest influence, followed by therapist experience, waiting time, delivery mode, then therapist gender.
Latent class analysis identified five distinct preference classes, supporting the need for tailored mental health service provision.

Psychother Res. 2026 May 15:1-14. doi: 10.1080/10503307.2026.2671190. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: Diagnosis rates of depression and demand for psychotherapy are increasing, posing significant challenges to the mental health care system. Availability of different treatments enables patients to express their preferences. Understanding these preferences can inform policy makers and clinicians and holds the potential to increase treatment adherence and improve clinical outcomes.

METHOD: A web survey was carried out among German adults (18-74) with psychotherapy experience, using quota sampling to reflect the gender distribution of psychotherapy-seeking adults. We conducted a discrete choice experiment to measure factors influencing the choice of psychotherapy. Included attributes were setting, delivery mode, waiting time, gender and professional experience of psychotherapist. Latent class analysis (LCA) was applied to identify preference patterns.

RESULTS: Respondents (n = 1575, 70.5% female, M_age = 47) preferred individual, face-to-face, shorter waiting times, female and more experienced therapists. Setting was most influential, followed by professional experience, waiting time, delivery mode and gender. LCA revealed five distinct classes that showed varying valuations of the attributes and their relative importance.

CONCLUSION: Results showed that respondents mainly homogeneously preferred specific treatment characteristics. These preferences should be considered when planning mental health services. Identification of distinct preference types suggests tailored provision of mental health care.

PMID:42138021 | DOI:10.1080/10503307.2026.2671190

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