The Application of a Follow-Up Technique in an Experimental Military Operant Conditioning Program

摘要

In the past decade there has been an increased awareness of the need for follow-up studies in psychiatry. It has been noted with criticism that systematic 'follow-up of psychiatric patients is remarkably rare.' The need for such studies has been accentuated by the findings of investigators such as Eysenck, Freeman and Simmons, and Lewis which show that the effectiveness of psychotherapy was difficult to establish. The purpose of this paper is to present the follow-up procedure and instrument utilized as an integral part of an experimental behavior modification program with hospitalized character and behavior disorder patients. The statistical findings of this program are being prepared for future publication. Preliminary results have already been presented by Stayer and Jones. The follow-up method described in this paper is a practical attempt to obtain objective and valid data on the long-range effectiveness of the treatment program as well as a means of learning more about this patient population.