Research on task-centered practice

Since its inception about 25 years ago, the taskcentered model of social work practice has undergone a continuous program of research and development. Findings support the effectiveness of the model—especially with respect to problems of psychiatric outpatients and school-related problems of children—and the utility of time-limited service contracting. Studies have identified several correlates of positive outcome, including the degree of client commitment to do the task, the use of systematic procedures to prepare clients to carry out tasks, and the degree of focus on target problems. Future research will focus on the model's applications to new problems and populations and on increasing the durability and size of its effects, especially with school-related problems.