Maintenance of treatment effects: Introduction to the special series

This article introduces the special series on maintenance of gains following psychosocial interventions. The special series covers specific, prevalent disorders-unipolar depression, substance abuse, obesity, and conduct disorders-and treatments that have shown positive outcomes for follow-up periods as long as 1 year. The focus is on longer term maintenance, where much less is known. Promising strategies proposed in this series to extend treatment effects are highlighted, as are research strategies that have broad application across disorders.