EFFICACY OF PARENT-CHILD INTERACTION THERAPY - INTERIM-REPORT OF A RANDOMIZED TRIAL WITH SHORT-TERM MAINTENANCE

Describes interim results of a study examining the effectiveness of pa rent-child interaction therapy (PCIT) with families of preschool-age c hildren with oppositional defiant disorder. Following an initial asses sment, 64 clinic-referred families were randomly assigned to an immedi ate treatment (IT) or a wait-list control (WL) condition. Results indi cated that parents in the IT condition interacted more positively with their child and were more successful in gaining their child's complia nce than parents in the WL condition. In addition, parents who receive d treatment reported decreased parenting stress and a more internal lo cus of control. Parents in the IT group reported statistically and cli nically significant improvements in their child's behavior following P CIT. All families who received treatment reported high levels of satis faction with both the content and process of PCIT. Preliminary 4-month follow-up data showed that parents maintained gains on all self-repor t measures.