Modified electroconvulsive therapy （MECT） is one of the main treatments for common mental disorders such as schizophrenia and depression. Due to greater adverse impact of MECT on patient's cognition， there have been attempts to improve MECT， in which changing the electrode placement is one of the improvement directions. This paper reviews the research progress on improved electrode placement in MECT， with special attention to focal electrically-administered seizure therapy， left anterior-right temporal electroconvulsive therapy and left unilateral electroconvulsive therapy. These modified treatment methods can maintain the efficacy of MECT while reducing adverse cognitive effects on patients， thereby promoting early recovery of patients with mental illness.