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BackgroundPsychotherapy's equivalence paradox is that treatments tend to have equivalently positive outcomes despite non-equivalent theories and techniques. We replicated an earlier comparison of treatment approaches in a sample four times larger and restricted to primary-care mental health.MethodPatients (n=5613) who received cognitive–behavioural therapy (CBT), person-centred therapy (PCT) or psychodynamic therapy (PDT) at one of 32 NHS primary-care services during a 3-year period (2002–2005) completed the Clinical Outcomes in Routine Evaluation – Outcome Measure (CORE-OM) at the beginning and end of treatment. Therapists indicated which approaches were used on an End of Therapy form. We compared outcomes of groups treated with CBT (n=1045), PCT (n=1709), or PDT (n=261) only or with one of these plus one additional approach (e.g. integrative, supportive, art), designated …