Abstract
95 men and 125 women mental hospital patients were asked to indicate preference for relatively structured (lectures) versus relatively unstructured (group discussions) psychotherapy, each of which the patient experienced in the hospital. The preferences were related to the patients' degree of authoritarianism as measured by the California F Scale and degree of mental pathology as measured by the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory. Social class was held relatively constant, since all patients were of lower-middle or lower class. Authoritarianism was higher in those preferring the structured approach but degree of pathology was not consistently distinguishing. It is concluded that the personality of the patient can be an important factor in considering the kind of psychotherapeutic approach to be used.
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