Sustainability of the effectiveness of a programme of multisystemic treatment (MST) across participant groups in the second year of operation

Abstract

In order to examine the sustainability of programme effectiveness, we investigated whether the effects of multisystemic treatment (MST) on a second group of adolescents would match those reported in an earlier randomised controlled trial (RCT). Pre‐ and post‐treatment assessments were analysed in a participant group of 105; 55 youths were referred to MST in the programme's second year of operation (MST2), and 50 youths were included in the RCT the first year in which 30 were randomly assigned to MST (MST1) and 20 to regular services (RS).At two project sites, MST clinical outcomes in the second year of programme operation matched and, for key indices of anti‐social behaviour, surpassed those achieved during the first year. In addition the MST treatment delivered in the second year was more effective than regular child welfare services in preventing out of home placement and reducing internalising and externalising behaviour. Together, these results demonstrated sustained effectiveness of the programme as well as indication of programme maturation effects. No group differences were registered for social competence. MST youths treated in the second year were significantly younger than those referred to treatment in the first year (MST1) but age had no moderating effect on the outcomes.

Intervening in youth problem behavior in Sweden: a pragmatic cost analysis of MST from a randomized trial with conduct disordered youth

“…Research on the effectiveness of MST in the USA has shown positive short-term and long-term results, when compared with alternative treatments, in reducing criminal behavior and violence, substance abuse, and serious emotional disturbance, as well as improving family relations and functioning (Borduin et al, 1995;Curtis, Ronan, & Bordouin, 2004;Henggeler et al, 1997Henggeler et al, , 2006Henggeler & Brondino, 1992;Henggeler, Pickrel, & Brondino, 1999;Schaeffer & Borduin, 2005;TimmonsMitchell, Bender, Kishna, & Mitchell, 2006). Similar positive short-term (Ogden & Halliday-Boykins, 2004) and long-term (Ogden & Amlund Hagen, 2006;Ogden, Amlund Hagen, & Andersen, 2007) treatment results have been reported from Norway. In Canada, however, successful replication of treatment results has not been achieved (Cunningham, 2002).…”

Evidence-Based Psychosocial Treatments for Adolescents With Disruptive Behavior

“…Many of the published RCTs have demonstrated long-term outcomes, including one showing sustained disruptive behavior outcomes for MST versus individual therapy (blend of psychodynamic, client-centered, and behavioral) at 14- and 22-years posttreatment (Sawyer & Borduin, 2011; Schaeffer & Borduin, 2005). In addition to RCTs, there have been five (nonrandomized) clinical studies of MST for justice-involved youth that evaluated disruptive behavior outcomes, all conducted independently of developers and all demonstrating positive disruptive behavior findings favoring MST (see Table 3; Curtis, Ronan, Heiblum, & Crellin, 2009; Fain, Greathouse, Turner, & Weinberg, 2014; Ogden, Hagen, & Andersen, 2007; Smith-Boydston, et al, 2014; Stambaugh et al, 2007). Notably, MST also is among the ecological family-based treatments deemed well established for treatment of adolescent substance abuse (Hogue, et al, 2014), and it has been adapted for other specific problems in adolescents and young adults (i.e., juvenile sexual offenders; youth in psychiatric crisis; youth with physical abuse; youth with chronic health conditions; emerging adults with justice involvement and mental illness).…”

Six years on: a prospective cohort study of male juvenile offenders in secure care

“…Evaluation studies of MST in a number of different countries have been promising, including a relatively low drop-out rate and benefits maintained at follow-up [32,37]. MST has also shown to be effective for young people with substance misuse disorders [32], which is an important consideration in view of the high prevalence rate in persistent offenders.…”