Standardized Patients in Clinical Psychology: From Research to Practice

Background: Within the pending reform of the German law of psychotherapy training, education in clinical psychology and the examination of psychotherapeutic competencies are established as more practice oriented. Students will acquire and demonstrate therapeutic skills through interactions with standardized patients (SPs). The aim of the current paper is to enhance evidence-based implementation of these new methods of education and examination by presenting the current evidence regarding the use of SPs and by pointing out areas for further research. Results: Results of recent studies demonstrate that SPs are able to present mental disorders authentically. Prerequisites are, among others, the selection of suitable SPs, detailed role scripts, specific training, feedback, and corrective training. Although some research questions, including the comparative effectiveness of SPs, remain unanswered, practice implications for using SPs in education, examination, and research can be drawn. These implications are illustrated schematically. Conclusions: The use of SPs has large potential for education in clinical psychology and for research on psychotherapy training. With a view to encouraging the widespread use of SPs, we provide exemplary materials (e.g., role script) within the online supplements (for all online suppl. material, see www.karger.com/doi/10.1159/000510049).