None listed
Conditions
Brief summary
There is increasing evidence of a relationship between trauma and psychosis. Recent evidence also suggests that there are potential shared mechanisms involved in the genesis of posttraumatic intrusions and posttraumatic voice hearing. The Recall study is a pilot trial aiming to provide initial evidence regarding the acceptability, feasibility and effectiveness of applying established trauma-focussed treatments to voice hearing. In addition, in the spirit of the interventionist-causal approach, the study aims to provide a preliminary assessment of the effects of the intervention on the proposed mechanisms of change. The findings of the pilot study will inform future treatment trials using trauma-focussed therapies for post traumatic voice hearing.
Interventions
Imaginal Exposure plus treatment as usual: The active intervention will be an 'imaginal exposure' intervention consisting of 6 weekly sessions of 90-minute duration. Imaginal exposure is a common element of several effective trauma-focussed treatments and involves repeated exposure to the trauma narrative through verbal recounting. The treatment will be delivered face to face in a mental health clinic by a doctoral level, registered Clinical Psychologist. Overall supervision will be provided by
Imaginal Exposure plus treatment as usual: The active intervention will be an 'imaginal exposure' intervention consisting of 6 weekly sessions of 90-minute duration. Imaginal exposure is a common element of several effective trauma-focussed treatments and involves repeated exposure to the trauma narrative through verbal recounting. The treatment will be delivered face to face in a mental health clinic by a doctoral level, registered Clinical Psychologist. Overall supervision will be provided by a senior Clinical Psychologist with extensive experience in psychological interventions for voice hearers. The intervention is manualised. The initial session will involve education regarding trauma and memory processing, a review and elaboration of the client’s trauma-voice link formulation established in the baseline assessment, and an explanation of the rationale for imaginal exposure. Sessions 2 – 6 will follow the protocol for imaginal exposures outlined in the Prolonged Exposure treatment manual (Foa, Hembree, & Rothbaum, 2007). Participants will also be required to listen to audio recordings of their in-session imaginal exposures for homework in sessions 2-5. This will be approximately 30-40 minutes of homework each day during this period. Ten percent of sessions will be randomly selected for adherence checks by a senior clinician using an adherence checklist. Participants in this group will also continue to receive standard psychiatric interventions such as case management and medication.
Sponsors
Swinburne University of Technology
Study design
Allocation
Non-randomised trial
Intervention model
Single group
Primary purpose
Treatment
Masking
Open (masking not used) (Outcomes Assessor)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Age
18 Years to 75 Years
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
(a) aged 18-75 (b) persistent voice hearing that has been present for > 6 months and is currently occurring at least twice a week (c) a history of criterion A traumatic events, childhood adversity or significant interpersonal victimisation (assessed by standardised trauma checklists) (d) has made some conceptual links between their past adverse experiences and their experience of voice hearing and, for this reason, is motivated to undertake a trauma-focussed intervention e) has a sufficient level of English language to participate in study requirements
Exclusion criteria
a) recent (past month) or planned change in psychiatric medication b) substance induced voices OR current substance dependence issues that would interfere with participation in the trial c) Intellectual disability (Wechsler Test of Adult Reading estimated IQ < 70) (d) Acute risk to self or others, defined by the presence of suicidal or homicidal thoughts with current intent. e) Participant’s treating team report that undertaking the study treatment would pose a serious risk to the safety of the participant or the safety of other people.
Outcome results
None listed