ClinicalTrials.gg
CompletedNCT01963806Updated Jul 28, 2021

ACT-smart: Smartphone-supplemented iCBT for Social Phobia and/or Panic Disorder

An interventional study of Smartphone-supplemented iCBT and Therapist support in Panic Disorder and Phobic Disorders, sponsored by Stockholm University. Completed at 1 site in Sweden. Open to participants aged 18 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2021-07-28.

Sponsored by Stockholm University · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment

Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
152
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
18 Years and older
Sex
All
01

Study summary

BACKGROUND: Smartphone technology presents a novel and promising opportunity to extend the reach of psychotherapeutic interventions by moving selected parts of the therapy into the real-life situations causing distress. This randomised controlled trial will investigate the effect of a transdiagnostic, Internet-administered cognitive behavioural (iCBT) self-help program for anxiety, supplemented with a tailored smartphone application. The effect of added therapist support will also be studied.

METHODS/DESIGN: 150 participants meeting diagnostic criteria for social anxiety disorder and/or panic disorder will be evenly randomised to one of three treatment arms: (1) smartphone-supplemented iCBT with therapist support; (2) smartphone-supplemented iCBT without therapist support; or (3) an active waiting list control group with delayed treatment. After the 10 week treatment period, the control group (3) will receive the same treatment as group (2). Primary outcome measure will be the Generalised Anxiety Disorder 7-item self-rating scale. Secondary measures include other anxiety, depression and quality of life measures. In addition to pre- and post-treatment measurements, the study includes two mid-treatment and two follow-up assessments (12 and 24 months).

HYPOTHESES: Based on prior research, we hypothesise that the therapist-guided form will be superior to the unguided form in reducing anxiety levels, and that both delivery modes will be superior to an active waiting-list control group.

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Conditions studied

  • Panic Disorder
  • Phobic Disorders
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In context

Panic Disorder

270 studies on the registry are indexed under Panic Disorder; 37 are open to participants now.

This study's enrollment of 152 is above the median of 77 across 215 interventional studies indexed under Panic Disorder.

Browse Panic Disorder studies →

Lead sponsor

Stockholm University is the lead sponsor of 25 studies on the registry; 2 are open to participants now.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

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Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years and older
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.

Inclusion criteria

  • Satisfy criteria for panic disorder and/or social anxiety disorder as assessed by the SCID.
  • Daily access to the Internet via computer and smartphone
  • Residing in Sweden and speaking sufficient Swedish to communicate with the research team

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Parallel psychological treatment
  • Non-stable dosage of psychoactive medication during last 3 months
  • Participants deemed to suffer from suicidal tendencies or another condition requiring specialized treatment
Terms in these criteria, in plain language(1)

Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.

DSM diagnostic criteria

The American Psychiatric Association’s manual of mental health diagnoses. DSM-5 (2013, revised as DSM-5-TR in 2022) replaced DSM-IV, and some studies still name the older edition. “Meets DSM criteria for …” means diagnosed by that edition’s diagnostic criteria, usually by a clinician in an interview.

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Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
None (open label)
Enrollment
152 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    Smartphone-supplemented iCBT with therapist support

    n = 50

    Behavioral: Smartphone-supplemented iCBT · Behavioral: Therapist support

  • Experimental
    Smartphone-supplemented iCBT without therapist support

    n = 50

    Behavioral: Smartphone-supplemented iCBT

  • Active comparator
    Active waiting list control group with delayed treatment

    n = 50

    Behavioral: Smartphone-supplemented iCBT · Other: Active waiting list

Interventions

  • BehavioralSmartphone-supplemented iCBT

    The Internet-administered cognitive behavioural self-help program (iCBT) will be divided into 10 weekly, progressively available modules covering CBT and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) conceptualisations of anxiety disorders, as well as more specific therapeutic techniques such as cognitive restructuring, exposure training, attention and breathing exercises and relapse prevention . Each module also includes writing exercises. Also included is a tailored smartphone application. Briefly, the application allows the user to access, create and modify a personal database of behaviours and check-off these behaviours immediately when completed. Frequency of carried-out behaviours are recorded and displayed as statistics. The application also allows users to browse and search a database of behaviours uploaded by other study participants, providing both inspiration and a sense of social support.

  • BehavioralTherapist support

    The role of the therapists will be to provide feedback on the written exercises of each treatment module, as well as to provide support and encouragement. As a rule of thumb, the therapists will devote 15 minutes per participant and week.

  • OtherActive waiting list

    Completes measurements at day 24 and 48 and at the end of the initial treatment period, otherwise no activity until crossover.

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What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. The Generalised Anxiety Disorder 7-item (GAD-7)

    The Generalised Anxiety Disorder 7-item (GAD-7). The 7 items of the scales are rated 0-3 ("Not at all" to "Nearly every day") based on their occurrence within the last 2 weeks. Good internal consistency and factor structure has been reported.

    Time frame: Change from baseline at: [1] day 24 and [2] day 48 into the 10-week treatment period; [3] 0-1 week after the treatment period; follow-ups at [4] month 12 and [5] month 36 after the treatment period.

Secondary outcomes

  1. Self-rated Liebowitz Social Anxiety Scale (LSAS-SR)

    Time frame: Change from baseline at: [1] 0-1 week after the treatment period; follow-ups at [2] month 12 and [3] month 36 after the treatment period.

  2. Self-rated Panic Disorder Severity Scale (PDSS-SR)

    Time frame: Change from baseline at: [1] 0-1 week after the treatment period; follow-ups at [2] month 12 and [3] month 36 after the treatment period.

  3. 9-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9)

    Time frame: Change from baseline at: [1] day 24 and [2] day 48 into the 10-week treatment period; [3] 0-1 week after the treatment period; follow-ups at [4] month 12 and [5] month 36 after the treatment period.

  4. Quality of Life Inventory (QOLI)

    Time frame: Change from baseline at: [1] 0-1 week after the treatment period; follow-ups at [2] month 12 and [3] month 36 after the treatment period.

07

Study locations

1 site
  • Stockholm University
    Stockholm, Sweden
08

References and documents

Publications

  • Lindner P, Ivanova E, Ly KH, Andersson G, Carlbring P. Guided and unguided CBT for social anxiety disorder and/or panic disorder via the Internet and a smartphone application: study protocol for a randomised controlled trial. Trials. 2013 Dec 18;14:437. doi: 10.1186/1745-6215-14-437. PubMed 24351088 ↗
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Updates

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Jul 28, 2021, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
10

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT01963806
Lead sponsor
Stockholm University
Responsible party
Per Carlbring (Professor, Stockholm University) — Principal investigator
First posted
Oct 16, 2013
Start date
Sep 2013
Primary completion
Nov 2015
Completion
Nov 2015
Last update
Jul 28, 2021

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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