Patient Predictors of Response to Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT) for Depression

Abstract

Researchers in the past 20 years have identified a number of patient-specific variables that appear to moderate response to IPT for depression. These factors include length of the depressive episode, biological sleep profile, baseline social functioning, adult attachment profile, level of perfectionism, presence of personality disorder, level of somatic anxiety, and expectations about treatment. The therapeutic alliance is also important to consider, as it may interact with patient characteristics to influence outcome. The evidence for each of these factors is presented in order to begin to create a profile of patients who are more likely to respond to IPT for depression. Implications for clinical practice and future research directions are discussed.