Study designs of evaluations included in the review
The authors did not explicitly state any inclusion criteria relating to study design, though all included studies were randomised controlled trials (RCTs).
Specific interventions included in the review
The authors did not explicitly state any inclusion criteria relating to interventions, though all included studies evaluated individual or group CBT. The control treatments included recreational therapy, supportive counselling and routine care.
Participants included in the review
The authors did not explicitly state any inclusion criteria relating to participants. Where reported, the participants in the included studies had psychotic illness.
Outcomes assessed in the review
The authors did not explicitly state any inclusion criteria relating to outcomes. The measures of outcomes in the reported trials included symptoms, social functioning, time to discharge and scores on the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale and the Psychotic Rating Scale.
How were decisions on the relevance of primary studies made?
The authors did not state how the papers were selected for the review, or how many reviewers performed the selection.