Is professional training worth the bother? A review of the impact of psychotherapy training on client outcome

This article reviews the research literature on the effectiveness of parapr ofessional counsellors and the impact of psychotherapy training on client o utcome. Methodological and conceptual difficulties that have hampered previ ous research in this area are noted, and several well-designed individual s tudies are highlighted. The existing evidence supports the efficacy of para professional counsellors, although professional training may lead to better outcome in specific areas, such as greater client retention, briefer thera py, and better overall wellbeing for clients. However, methodological limit ations of the research prohibit definitive conclusions. Guidelines for futu re research are offered.