Mental health treatment has entered a new era. In it, cost-effective, efficient treatment outcomes have become the norm for the provision of mental health services - a norm that is very different from the one in which most providers were trained. Confusion and concern are the results of this new paradigm. Some professionals view outcome systems as an intrusion into their practice and as a breach of confidentiality. Others are trying to adapt to the system. All are asking such basic questions as: What are treatment outcomes? How are they measured? What are the implications for practice? And the literature on outcomes research geared towards professionals - which would provide the answers - has been virtually nonexistent until now.