Patient preferences with regard to ideal therapist characteristics.

Sixty patients seen at a VA Outpatient Mental Hygiene Clinic described their perceptions of ideal therapist characteristics on a 128-item checklist and subsequently described their own therapist on the same checklist. Patients then rated satisfaction with treatment on a 5-item questionnaire. There was good agreement among patients on both characteristics of the ideal therapist and satisfaction with various aspects of therapy. Data suggest that there is consensus on what patients expect in a therapist and also suggest a relationship between how well therapists meet these expectancies and how effective patients consider their therapy.