Factors influencing length of stay in psychiatric day care.

The goal of the present study was to discover the factors which influence psychiatric day care patients to remain in treatment. Of the numerous variables examined, three accounted for 65 percent of the variance. They were prior duration of the disorder which accounted for about half, followed by patients' satisfaction with treatment, and age. Contrary to previous findings, patients' initial expectations and whether or not they were confirmed played no part in their decision to remain in treatment.