Adolescent insight within the working alliance: A bridge between diagnostic and psychotherapeutic processes

Michela Gatta¹, Andrea Spoto², Paolo Testa³, Lorenza Svanellini³, Jessica Lai³, Maurizio Salis³, Maxim De Sauma⁴, Pier Antonio Battistella<sup>3

1</sup>Department of Paediatrics, ²Department of General Psychology, ³Neuropsychiatric Unit for Children and Adolescents, Azienda ULSS 16, Padua, Italy; ⁴Brent Centre For Young People, London, UK

Abstract: In the literature it has been stressed how important it is during consultation interviews to evaluate an adolescent’s insight with a view to starting psychotherapeutic work. Motivated adolescents bring to the therapeutic effort a real, interiorized request for help and can start moving towards a change. The aim of this study is to assess the insight of adolescents with mental disorders during the diagnostic process and to analyze how this relates to further therapeutic compliance and clinical evolution. The study included 55 adolescents, 35 males and 20 females aged between 11 and 19 years, who were advised to receive psychotherapeutic treatment after a diagnostic procedure. Patient insight was assessed at the beginning and end of the diagnostic process. Then, six months later, a clinical interview assessed their therapeutic compliance and clinical evolution. The findings suggest that insight is important when working with adolescents because it influences both therapeutic compliance and clinical outcome.

Keywords: adolescence, insight, therapeutic alliance, therapeutic compliance, outcome