Researchers have found that clients report high satisfaction with marriage and family therapy, with significant improvements in areas of emotional and physical health, functioning, and relationships.

• 98.1% of MFT clients surveyed rated services as good or excellent
  98.0% indicated that they felt they had been helped in dealing more effectively with problems
• 97.1% indicated they got the kind of help they desired
• 96.9% indicated they would recommend their therapist to a friend

(Doherty & Simmons, 1996)

Several other studies have also shown the effectiveness of marriage and family therapy:

• Liddle (1993) found that family therapy has been more successful than any other form of outpatient therapy in keeping adolescents with drug use problems in treatment and in reducing their drug use, thereby preventing costly hospitalizations.
• Goldstein (1987) found that the rehospitalization rate for patients with schizophrenia in a 6 month period was 0% when family therapy was part of the treatment plan, but 30% for patients who used drug treatment alone.
• Retzer, et al. (1991) found that relapse rates were reduced by 77% for patients with manic depressive or schizoaffective psychoses after receiving brief family therapy (6 sessions). One-half of these patients were able to function without major medication 3 years later.