Long-term Physical Health Conditions, Mild to Moderate Anxiety and/or Depression
Conditions
Brief summary
The purpose of this study is to determine whether a specific component of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) called 'Self as Context' is an important and necessary part of this therapeutic approach.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALAcceptance and Commitment Therapy
Half of the participants will receive an eight-session ACT intervention whereby each component of the psychological flexibility model will be covered. Half of the participants will receive an eight-session act intervention whereby each component except self as context will be covered.
Sponsors
University of Sheffield
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
SINGLE (Subject)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to 65 Years
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
* Adults of working age (18-65) * Patients with a primary positive diagnosis of a long-term health condition (The most common conditions referred to the service are Diabetes, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease \[COPD\], Rheumatoid Arthritis and Epilepsy) where there is a verifiable medical diagnosis supported by the patients General Practitioner (GP) and/or secondary care physician * Patients with concurrent mental health difficulties (defined as mild - moderate anxiety and/or depression, see table one).
Exclusion criteria
* Patients with a primary diagnosis of 'medically unexplained symptoms' (MUS) including somatoform disorders (e.g. pain disorder, conversion disorder, body dysmorphic disorder, hypochondriasis) and functional somatic syndromes (e.g. irritable bowel syndrome, chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, non-cardiac chest pain, non-epileptic seizures) * Mental health diagnoses in addition to mild - moderate anxiety / depression (e.g. personality disorder, bipolar disorder, psychosis etc.) * Patients in receipt of secondary care mental health services * Patients with severe and enduring mental health difficulties * Significant risk issues, or current substance misuse * Previous contact with mental health services (defined as two or more prior episodes of contact without significant change) * Inpatient admission for mental health difficulties within the last five years * History of overdoses or other self-injury * Stated reluctance to engage in psychotherapy
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Change from baseline psychological flexibility at end of 8-session psychological intervention (approximately 8 weeks) and at post-therapy eight week follow-up (using the Acceptance and Action Questionnaire II) | Measure taken at first therapy appointment (baseline), taken again after 8-session intervention (approximately 8 weeks) and again at eight week post-therapy follow-up | The Acceptance and Action Questionnaire II (Bond et al., 2011) is a 10-item self-report questionnaire measuring psychological flexibility on a 7-point likert scale |
| Change from baseline self-report 'quality of life' at end of 8-session psychological intervention (approximately 8 weeks) and at post-therapy eight week follow-up (using the Work and Social Adjustment Scale) | Measure taken at first therapy appointment (baseline), taken again after 8-session intervention (approximately 8 weeks) and again at eight week post-therapy follow-up | The Work and Social Adjustment Scale (Mundt, Marks, Shear, & Greist, 2002) is a 5-item self-report questionnaire measuring functional impairment and disability attributable to the effects of a health condition using a 9-point likert scale |
Countries
United Kingdom
Outcome results
None listed