Single-subject designs provide a solution to this dilemma. By employing single-subject designs, a clinician who typically works with individual clients or small groups can conduct experi- mental research and practice therapy simultaneously without seriously com- promising either activity.
By recording and graphing observations during the course of treatment, a clinician can demonstrate a cause-and-effect relation- ship between a treatment and a client’s behavior. This scientific demonstration is an important part of establishing accountability in the field of clinical psy- chology. That is, clinicians should be able to demonstrate unambiguously that the treatments they use are effective.