A COMPARISON OF DESCRIPTIVE VARIABLES FOR CLINICAL PATIENTS AND SYMPTOMATIC VOLUNTEERS WITH DEPRESSIVE-DISORDERS

Uncertainty about the generalizability of results from clinical trials is a nagging issue plaguing psychiatric research. The possible bias i ntroduced by the use of subjects recruited from advertisements is one source of concern. Investigators question whether these subjects are r epresentative of the types of individuals who seek treatment in clinic al practice. This article compares and contrasts demographic character istics, functional disabilities, symptomatologies, and the health beli efs and expectations of a cohort seeking treatment at a university out patient clinic with a, cohort of symptomatic volunteers recruited by a dvertisements. These two groups mere alike in most variables; however, the clinical subjects reported more recent exposure to psychotropic m edications and were more Likely to indicate that they wanted psychothe rapy. The symptomatic volunteers were slightly older, endorsed more ps ychiatric symptoms, drank more alcohol, and believed that combined pha rmacology and psychotherapy would most help them. These findings sugge st that the two cohorts were remarkably similar on most variables.