None listed
Conditions
Brief summary
A randomised controlled trial (RCT) will be used to evaluate the effectiveness of the BO program; an internet-based CBT program for BN. Participants will be randomly assigned to one of three conditions; (1) BO with therapist assistance (BO-TA); (2) BO automated self help (BO-ASH); or (3) a wait-list control (WLC) group. Participants in the BO-TA condition will be allocated an online therapist (who will be a fully or provisionally registered psychologist) who will email them once per week and whom they can email as often as they wish. Participants in the BO-ASH condition will be sent a weekly automated email reminding them to complete the modules and encouraging them to think about important points from each module. Participants in the WLC condition will have access to the BO-ASH condition after three months. Participants randomised to the intervention conditions (BO-TA and BO-ASH) will complete online assessments at pre, post- and 3-month follow-up. Participants randomised to the waitlist control condition will complete online assessments at pre and post waitlist, as well as post and 3- month follow-up BO. This study is a repeated measures design with three time points. We will employ multi-level modelling to allow for the comparison of the two BO programs and waitlist control condition in terms of changes in clinical diagnosis, BN specific symptomatology, general psychological functioning and quality of life, drop-out, and program engagement while controlling for and testing for any important participant variables such as age, gender and education. In addition, pre-, post- and follow-up variables will be subjected to correlational and multiple regression analyses to determine significant correlates of treatment adherence and attrition and potential predictors and discriminators of successful intervention outcome.
Interventions
The intervention is an online cognitive behavioural program for bulimia nervosa - called Bulimia Online. The program includes 12 modules which participants are given 12 weeks to complete. It is estimated that participants will engage in approximately 1 hour of online reading and approximately 1-2 hours of offline activities per week. Modules cover topics including food monitoring, regular eating, meal planning, mindfulness, self-esteem, thoughts and behaviours related to shape and weight, perfec
The intervention is an online cognitive behavioural program for bulimia nervosa - called Bulimia Online. The program includes 12 modules which participants are given 12 weeks to complete. It is estimated that participants will engage in approximately 1 hour of online reading and approximately 1-2 hours of offline activities per week. Modules cover topics including food monitoring, regular eating, meal planning, mindfulness, self-esteem, thoughts and behaviours related to shape and weight, perfectionism, assertiveness and relapse prevention. Participants will be randomly assigned to one of three conditions; (1) BO with therapist assistance (BO-TA); (2) BO automated self help (BO-ASH); or (3) a wait-list control (WLC) group. Participants in the BO-TA condition will be allocated an online therapist (who will be a fully or provisionally registered psychologist) who will email them once per week and whom they can email as often as they wish. Participants in the BO-ASH condition will be sent a weekly automated email reminding them to complete the modules and encouraging them to think about important points from each module. Participants in the WLC condition will have access to the BO-ASH condition after three months.
Sponsors
Swinburne University
Study design
Allocation
Randomised controlled trial
Intervention model
Parallel
Primary purpose
Treatment
Masking
Blinded (masking used)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
BMI of 18 or above; Australian resident; regular internet access; if taking psychotropic medication, to be included in the study participants must have been taking a constant dose for the past 3 months and must agree to maintain that dose for the duration of the study.
Exclusion criteria
Primary diagnosis of depression, PTSD or substance dependence; currently undertaking CBT for bulimia; high risk of suicide
Outcome results
None listed