Social work is in the midst of a trend to assess the efficacy of various modes of treatment. This
article presents a research method heavily utilized in the biomedical sector and currently
entering the psychosocial disciplines to achieve this goal, namely, controlled clinical trials. This
method is first described, some studies which employed it are presented, its potential benefits
are explored, the problems it poses for social work use are summarized, and conclusions are put
forth which suggest steps necessary for its successful use in social work practice.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Bander, K.W., Fein, E., & Bishop, G. (1982). Evaluation of child-sexual abuse programs. In S. M. Sgroi (Ed.), Handbook of clinical intervention in child sexual abuse (pp. 345-376). Lexington, MA: Lexington Books.
2.
Barlow, D.H. (1981). On the relation of clinical research to clinical practice: Current issues, new directions. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 49, 147-155.
3.
Begg, C.B., Carbone, P.P., Elson, P.J., & Zellen, M. (1982). Participation of community hospitals in clinical trials: Analysis of five years experience in the Eastern Oncology Cooperative Group. New England Journal of Medicine, 306,1076-1080.
4.
Benbenisty, R. (1989). Combining the single-system and group approaches to evaluate treatment effectiveness on the agency level. Journal of Social Service Research, 12(3/4), 31-48.
5.
Bialer, J.C., Louis, T.A., Lavori, P.W., & Polansky, M. (1984). Statistics in practice studies without internal controls. New England Journal of Medicine, 311, 156-162.
6.
Bond, G., Miller, L.D., & Halter, C.A. (1989, June). Controlled research on rehabilitation approaches for dually diagnosed young adults. Paper presented at the meeting of the International Association of Psychosocial Rehabilitation Services. Miami, FL.
7.
Brewin, T.B. (1982). Consent to randomized treatment. Lancet, 2, 919-921.
8.
Bronson, D.E., & Blythe, B.J. (1987). Computer support for single-case evaluation of practice. Social Work Research & Abstracts, 20(1), 10-13.
9.
Butler, J., Bow, I., & Gibbons, J. (1978). Task centered casework with marital problems. British Journal of Social Work, 8, 393-409.
10.
Byar, D.P., Simon, R.M., Friedewald, T.W., Schlesselman, J.J., DeMets, D.L., Ellenberg, J.H., Gail, M.H., & Ware, J.H. (1976). Randomizing clinical trials: Perspectives on some recent ideas. New England Journal of Medicine, 295, 74-80.
11.
Chaput de tonge, D.M. (1977). Aide-memoire for preparing clinical trial protocols . British Medical Journal, 1, 1323-1324.
12.
Corcoran, K.J. (1985). Aggregating the idiographic data of single-subject research. Social Work Research & Abstracts, 21(2), 9-12.
13.
Corcoran, K.J., & Fischer, J. (1987). Measures for clinical practice: A resourcebookNew York: Free Press.
14.
Corney, R.H. (1984). The effectiveness of attached social workers in the management of depressed female patients in general practice. Psychological Medicine, 14(Monograph suppl. 6), 1-47.
15.
Corney, R.H. (1987). Marital problems and treatment outcome in depressed women: Aclinical trial of social work intervention. British Journal of Psychiatry, 151, 652-659.
16.
Cox, R.D. (1958). Planning of experiments. New York: Wiley.
17.
Detsky, A.S. (1989). Are clinical trials a cost-effective investment?Journal of American Medical Association, 262, 1795-1800.
18.
Food and Drug Administration. (1977). Bureau of Drugs clinical guidelines. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office.
19.
Gehan, E.A., & Freidreich, E.J. (1974). Non-randomized controls in cancer clinical trials. New England Journal of Medicine , 290, 198-203.
20.
Ghosh, A., Marks, I.M., & Carr, A.C. (1988). Therapist contact and outcome of self-exposure treatment for phobia: A controlled study. British Journal of Psychiatry, 152, 234-238.
21.
Gilbert, J.P., McPeek, B., & Mosteller, F. (1977). Statistics and ethics in surgery and anesthesia . Science, 198, 684-689.
22.
Gingerich, W.J. (1984a). Generalizing single case evaluation from classroom to practice setting. Journal of Education for Social Work , 20, 74-82.
23.
Gingerich, W.J. (1984b). Meta-analysis of applied time series data. Journal ofAppliedBehavioral Sciences, 20, 71-79.
24.
Gordon, W.E. (1965). Knowledge and value: Their distinction and relationship in clarifying social work practice. Social Work, 10, 731-738.
25.
Graber, R.A., & Miller, W.R. (1988). Abstinence or controlled drinking goals for problem drinkers: A randomized clinical trial. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 2, 20-33.
26.
Greenhouse, J.B., Stangl, D., & Bromberg, J. (1989). An introduction to survival analysis: Statistical methods for the analysis of clinical trial data. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 57, 536-544.
27.
Gurman, A.S., & Kniskern, D.P. (1980). Deterioration in marital and family therapy: Empirical, clinical and conceptual issues. Family Process, 17, 3-20.
28.
Hanrahan, P., & Reid, W.J. (1984). Choosing effective intervention. Social Service Review, 58, 244-258.
29.
Hersen, J., & Barlow, D. (1976). Single-case experimental designs. New York: Pergamon.
30.
Hogarty, G.E., Anderson, C.M., Reiss, D.J., Kornblith, S.J., Greenwald, D.P., & Javna, C.D. (1986). Family psychoeducation, social skills training, and maintenance chemotherapy in the aftercare treatment of schizophrenia: One year effects of a controlled study on relapse and expressed emotion. Archives of General Psychiatry, 43, 633-642.
31.
Hudson, W.W. (1982). The clinical measurement package: A field manual . Chicago: Dorsey.
32.
Hunninghake, D.B., Darby, C.A., & Probstfield, J.L. (1987). Recruitment experience in clinical trials: Literature summary and annotated bibliography. Controlled Clinical Trials, 8, 6s-34s.
33.
Jayaratne, S. (1978). Analytic procedures for single-subject designs . Social Work Research & Abstracts, 14(3), 30-40.
34.
Jayaratne, S., & Daniels, W. (1981). Measurement cross-validation using replication procedures with single-case designs. Social Work Research & Abstracts, 17(3), 4-10.
Knatterud, G.L. (1981). Methods of quality control and the continuous audit procedures for controlled clinical trials. Controlled Clinical Trials, 1, 327-332.
37.
Kriska, A.M., Bayles, C., Cauley, J.A., & LaPorte, R.E. (1986). A randomized exercise trial in older women: Increased activity over two years and the factors associated with compliance. Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise, 18, 557-562.
38.
Lebacqz, K. (1980). Controlled clinical trials: Some ethical issues . Controlled Clinical Trials, 1, 29-36.
39.
Levine, J., Guy, W., & Cleary, P.A. (1974). Therapeutic trials in psychopharmacologic agents: 1968-1972. In F. G. McMahon (Ed.), Principles and techniques in human research: Vol. 8. Psychopharmacological agents. Mt. Kisco, NY: Futura.
40.
Levitt, J.L., & Reid, W.J. (1981). Rapid-assessment instruments for practice. Social Work Research & Abstracts, 17(1), 13-19.
41.
Mackillop, W.J., & Johnston, P.A. (1986). Ethical problems in clinical research: The need for empirical studies of the clinical trial process. Journal of Chronic Diseases, 39, 177-188.
42.
McDill, M. (1979). Activity analysis of data coordinating centers . In Coordinating center model project: A study of coordinating centers in multicenters clinical trials: XVI (pp. 105-125). Paper presented at the annual symposia on coordinating clinical trials. Bethesda, MD: Division of Heart and Vascular Diseases, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute.
43.
Meinart, C.L., Heintz, E.C., & Forman, S.A. (1983). Role and method of the coordinating center. Controlled Clinical Trials, 4, 355-375.
44.
Meinart, C.L., & Tonasica, S. (1986). Clinical trials: Design, conduct, and analysis . New York: Oxford University Press .
45.
Millar, K. (1983). Clinical trial design: The problem of asymmetrical transfer in cross-over trials. Psychological Medicine, 13, 867-873.
46.
Mutschler, E. (1984). Evaluating practice: A study of research utilization by practitioners. Social Work, 29, 332-337.
47.
Nelsen, J.C. (1985). Verifying the independent variable in single-subject research. Social Work Research & Abstracts, 21(2), 3-8.
48.
Pocock, S.T. (1983). Clinical trials: A practical approach. New York: Wiley.
49.
Pocock, S.T., & Lagakos, S.W. (1982). Practical experience of randomization in cancer trials: An international survey. British Journal of Cancer , 46, 368-375.
50.
Postlethwaite, R., Stirling, G., & Peck, C. (1986). Stress inoculation for acute pain: A clinical trial. Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 9, 219-227.
51.
Rosen, A., & Procter, E.K. (1978). Specifying the treatment process: The basis for effectiveness research. Journal of Social Service Research , 2, 25-43.
52.
Schoenfeld, D.A., & Gelber, R.D. (1979). Designing and analyzing clinical trials which allow institutions to randomize patients to a subset of treatments under study . Biometrics, 35, 825-829.
53.
Sireling, L., Cohen, D., & Marks, I. (1988). Guided mourning for morbid grief: A controlled replication. Behavior Therapy, 19, 121-132.
54.
Slonim-Nevo, V., & Clark, V.A. (1989). An illustration of survival analysis: Factors affecting contraceptive discontinuation among American teenagers. Social Work Research & Abstracts, 25(2), 7-14.
55.
Spencer, J.H., Glick, I.D., Haas, G.L., & Clarkin, J.F. (1988). A randomized clinical trial of inpatient family intervention: III. Effects at 6-months and 18-months follow-ups. American Journal of Psychiatry, 145, 1115-1121.
56.
Stein, L.I., & Test, M.A. (1980). Alternative to mental hospital treatment: I. Conceptual model, treatment program, and clinical evaluation. Archives of General Psychiatry, 37, 392-397.
57.
Stott, N.C.H. (1982). Clinical trials in general practice?British Medical Journal, 285, 941-944.
58.
Stravyanski, A., Marks, I., & Yule, W. (1982). Social skills problems in neurotic outpatients: Social skills with and without cognitive modification. Archives of General Psychiatry, 39, 1378-1385.
59.
Thyer, B.A. (1989). First principles of practice research. British Journal of Social Work, 19, 309-323.
60.
Welch, G.J. (1983). Will graduates use single subject designs to evaluate their casework practice?Journal of Education for Social Work , 19, 42-47.
61.
Williams, C.J., & Carter, S.K. (1978). Management of trials in the development of cancer chemotherapy. British Journal of Cancer, 37, 434-447.
