Three main streams are to be discerned in short-term psyschotherapy for depressions: cognitive therapy, `interpersonal therapy' and behaviour therapies. Only the last years with regard to these three a number of clinical trials have been published with an emphasis on a correct methodology. Rather uniformly they found little differences in effects immediately after therapy or after one year follow-up, and in percentage drop-outs between the mentioned psychotherapies, pharmacotherapy or a control group of aspecific psychotherapy with a good rationale.

Different orientated therapies equally influenced the different aspects (cognition, vegetative functions etc.) of the depression. These results match the theories of Frank, which say that the so-called aspecific factors are the essential aspects of a psychotherapy.

Further investigations should be directed on the influence of patientvariables and the maximization of the aspecific factors of a psychotherapy.