Comparative Study on Group Therapy for Generalised Anxiety Disorder

A randomised study to compare the effectiveness of three forms of group therapy for the treatment of generalised anxiety disorder. Outcomes measured are changes in symptoms and psychological processes commonly associated with GAD.

Status

Completed

Phases

Unknown

Study type

Interventional

Source

ANZCTR

Registry ID

ACTRN12605000392662

Enrollment

Registered

2005-09-14

Start date

2005-01-03

Completion date

2008-10-10

Last updated

2025-09-08

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

None listed

Brief summary

Thirty participants were assigned to either CBT, SE PDT or EFT group therapy for 9 weeks, while 28 participants were assigned to either CBT, or SE PDT for 14 weeks. The results showed that group therapy over both 9 weeks and 14 weeks significantly reduced anxiety and depressive symptom with gains maintained at 6-month follow-up. No significant differences were found between dosages or therapies at post-therapy. However, at 6-month follow-up, group CBT benefited recovery by 15% compared with group SE PDT.

Interventions

Participants are randomly assigned to one of three forms of group psychotherapy: cognitive behaviour therapy, emotion focused therapy, or psychodynamic therapy. Each group therapy has a dosage of a 2 hour session each week for 9 weeks.

Study design

Allocation

Randomised controlled trial

Intervention model

Parallel

Primary purpose

Treatment

Masking

Open (masking not used)

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

All

Age

18 Years to 65 Years

Healthy volunteers

Inclusion criteria

Criteria DSM IV diagnosis of Generalised Anxiety Disorder.

Exclusion criteria

Poor English language abilitiesCognitive deficits (intellectual disability, dementia, delirium, significant head injury)Psychotic illnessDisclosure of risk of harm to self or others.

Outcome results