A Phase 1/2 interventional study of Memory Flexibility Training and Psychoeducation in Major Depressive Disorder, sponsored by Medical Research Council Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit. Completed at 2 sites in United Kingdom. Open to participants aged 18 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2017-09-11.
Sponsored by Medical Research Council Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit · Phase 1/2, Interventional, and Treatment
Our collection of memories for personal experiences plays an important role in shaping our sense of who we are as people. These memories, termed autobiographical memories, can also be helpful in social situations, for sharing the details of our experiences with other people, reminiscing about pleasant times and solving problems by remembering what has and hasn't worked in the past. Different types of autobiographical memory are helpful to us depending on the particular situation the investigators are in at the time. Recent research has shown that experiencing depressed mood can affect how we relate to our autobiographical memories, so that instead of providing a rich source of personal information in a helpful and flexible way, the types of memories that come to mind are more narrowly focused on difficult or negative experiences. This can cause low mood to persist over time.
The purpose of this study is to test a newly-developed therapeutic training package for depressed mood (MemFlex), designed to encourage helpful and flexible ways of relating to autobiographical memories. The MemFlex programme consists of a one-to-one orientation session with the researcher to introduce the training package, followed by a workbook that is completed at home.
3,041 studies on the registry are indexed under Depressive Disorder, Major; 588 are open to participants now.
This study's enrollment of 60 is below the median of 79 across 2,530 interventional studies indexed under Depressive Disorder, Major.
Browse Depressive Disorder, Major studies →Medical Research Council Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit is the lead sponsor of 8 studies on the registry; 2 are open to participants now.
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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.
Exclusion Criteria:
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.
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.
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.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
The MemFlex programme draws on cognitive bias modification and memory specificity training techniques (Raes et al., 2009; Dalgleish et al., 2014), and was developed by clinical psychologists. MemFlex is primarily self-guided and aims to reduce autobiographical memory biases associated with depression. The training material is presented over one face-to-face session and eight self-guided sessions. In the initial session, the researcher introduces cued-recall tasks which are used throughout the workbook, and guides the participant in completion of these tasks. When understanding of the basic principles is satisfactory, the researcher assists the participant to set a schedule for completion of the workbook over the following four weeks. The participant will receive weekly emails during this period, encouraging them to complete the workbook. They will also receive a phone call from a team member at the beginning of week three to check progress.
Behavioral: Memory Flexibility Training
The psychoeducation condition will also complete an initial face-to-face session. This session will cover the symptoms and causes of depression, and the workbook will be introduced. As in the MemFlex condition, the workbook will consist of eight self-guided sessions that the individual will be required to complete over four weeks. The participant will receive weekly emails during this period, encouraging them to complete the workbook. They will also receive a phone call from a team member at the beginning of week three to check progress, and clarify any difficulties with the workbook material. The workbook content will cover the presentation of depression and basic information on factors associated with depression, such as worry, procrastination, and sleep difficulties. Each session consists of information on psychological theories of the topic, followed by a series of questions about the material to ensure participant engagement. The workbook was developed by clinical psychologists.
Behavioral: Psychoeducation
As in experimental arm description.
As in experimental arm description.
Depressive Status
Time frame: Three months after completion of the workbook
Change in score on the Beck Depression Inventory (Beck, Steer, & Brown, 1996) from baseline
Self report measure of depression symptoms
Time frame: Three months after completion of the workbook
Depression free days
Number of depression free days from post to follow-up.
Time frame: Three months after completion of the workbook
Change in memory flexibility from baseline, Score on the alternating instructions autobiographical memory task (Dritschel et al., 2013)
Score on the alternating instructions autobiographical memory task (Dritschel et al., 2013)
Time frame: Three months after completion of the workbook
Change in Rumination as measured by Rumination Response Scale
Rumination Response Scale (Treynor, Gonzalez, Nolen-Hoeksema, 2003);
Time frame: 4-6 weeks after beginning the workbook
Change in Cognitive Avoidance, as measured by Cognitive Avoidance Questionnaire
Cognitive Avoidance Questionnaire (Sexton \& Dugas, 2008)
Time frame: 4-6 weeks after beginning the workbook
Change in Verbal Fluency as measured by the Verbal Fluency Task
Verbal Fluency Task
Time frame: 4-6 weeks after beginning the workbook
Change in Anxiety symptoms, as measured by the Beck Anxiety Inventory
Beck Anxiety Inventory
Time frame: 4-6 weeks after beginning the workbook
Change in Hopelessness, as measured by Beck Hopelessness Scale
Beck Hopelessness Scale
Time frame: 4-6 weeks after beginning the workbook
Change in Problem solving, as measured by the Means-Ends Problem Solving task
Means-Ends Problem Solving task (Lyubomirsky \& Nolen-Hoeksema, 2003)
Time frame: 4-6 weeks after beginning the workbook
This study is completed, as verified in Sep 2017. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.
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Medical Research Council Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit