Am J Psychiatry 1978; 135:442-447
Copyright © 1978 by American Psychiatric Association
The unmotivated patient syndrome: survey of therapeutic interventions
Y Nir and R Cutler
The authors describe five groups of patients who have been found to respond
poorly to psychiatric treatment--people from lower socioeconomic groups,
juvenile delinquents, drug-addicted individuals, alcoholics and military
psychiatric patients. Although these groups of patients represent different
etiologies and symptom-specific pathologies, many of their members have in
common a lack of motivation for change. The authors discuss the reasons for
this lack of motivation, suggesting that focusing on this factor would
promote a better understanding of the unmotivated patient syndrome and lead
to the development of more effective psychotherapeutic efforts.
