Delusions, Psychotic Disorders, Schizophrenia and Related Disorders
Conditions
Keywords
Psychotic disorders, Delusions, Metacognitive Training, Schizophrenia
Brief summary
The project aims to evaluate the efficacy of a therapeutic video game that incorporates elements from metacognitive training on delusions and jumping-to-conclusions in patients with psychotic disorders.
Detailed description
The study is an international, multicenter study and is being conducted in Switzerland (University of Basel) as well as in Germany (University of Lübeck). A total of 36 participants will be included. The estimated duration of the study is 15 months. All participants play a video game from the genre Third Person Adventure. A character is navigated through a fantasy world using a keyboard and mouse. In the fantasy world, stations in the form of glowing gems are sought where players have to solve different tasks. Participants are randomized to receive either the therapeutic video game with metacognitive training content or another video game with attention and memory tasks (control intervention). The control intervention does not include metacognitive tasks. Metacognitive training is an approach for the treatment of psychotic disorders, particularly delusions. The focus of metacognitive training is on thought distortions (so-called cognitive biases) that are more pronounced in people with psychosis. The control intervention includes easily understandable, playful tasks. The intervention will take 4 appointments within 2 weeks.
Interventions
DEVICEMetacognitive training game
In the fantasy world Macu'ta, players explore the world by walking around with an avatar in order to find the puzzles and proceed in the game. The intervention consists of 4 different puzzles. Unbeknownst to the player, the first pieces of evidence of each puzzle are often misleading, i.e. indicate the wrong solution, such that hasty decisions are punished. Players receive immediate feedback and are shown the correct response after submitting their solution, as well as explicit cues that educate them on the value of making adequately informed decisions. The order of the puzzles is fixed for each player, but different per session.
DEVICEControl games
In the fantasy world Macu'ta, players explore the world by walking around with an avatar in order to find the puzzles and proceed in the game. The control intervention consists of 4 different puzzle games requiring exclusively dexterity and accuracy (i.e., not including any metacognitive elements). The order of the puzzles is fixed for each player, but different per session.
Sponsors
Christina Andreou
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
TRIPLE (Caregiver, Investigator, Outcomes Assessor)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to 40 Years
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
* aged between 18 and 40 * diagnosis of a psychotic disorder and current delusions or a history of delusions
Exclusion criteria
* Language skills insufficient for assessments * IQ \< 70 * Secondary psychotic disorders that are clearly induced by general medical conditions or substance use. * Previous participation in meta-cognitive training for psychosis
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Change of delusion severity | Change from pre- to post-intervention (4 weeks) | Item P1 of the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS). Min score = 1, max score = 7, where lower scores indicate better outcome. |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Change of total PANSS Score | Change from pre- to post-intervention (4 weeks) | Total score on the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale. Lower scores indicate better outcome. |
| Change of delusional conviction | Change from pre- to post-intervention (4 weeks) | Total score on the Psychotic Symptom Rating Scales, delusion part (PSYRATS). Lower scores indicate better outcome. |
| Fish Task: change of number of draws to decision | Change from pre- to post-intervention (4 weeks) | Number of draws to decision, assessed with the 'Fish task' |
| Fish Task: change of probability threshold to decision | Change from pre- to post-intervention (4 weeks) | Probability threshold to decision, assessed with the 'Fish task' |
Countries
Germany, Switzerland
Contacts
Primary ContactChristina Andreou, PD. Dr.
Backup ContactRenate de Bock, MSc
Outcome results
None listed