[The image of psychotherapies - a comparison between prospective therapists and laypersons].

OBJECTIVES: Considering the specific situation of psychotherapy in Austria with its wide range of different therapeutic methods which are accredited by law, we investigated their respective level of familiarity and the connotative associations of future therapists and of a sample group of the lay public regarding the different schools. METHODS: 175 persons (students of economics, students at the university clinic for psychoanalysis, and prospective psychotherapists) were interviewed concerning terms of familiarity and popularity of the therapeutic methods. Using the semantic differential we tried to operationalize the resonant connotative associations. RESULTS: There is insufficient information with regards to the existence of the various different schools on the side of the lay public. The connotations of the different groups are similar: independent of the level of familiarity, 4 different types of therapy can cluster-analytically be identified in relation to the 3 factors of the polarity profile (activity-potency-valence). CONCLUSIONS: More extensive information of the public concerning the different therapeutic possibilities is needed. Further the importance of considering subjective connotations in situations of referral and indication is discussed. Specific attention has been given to the situation of prospective psychotherapists.