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CompletedNCT02822443ImproveUpdated Sep 10, 2019

Improve: Integrating Emotion Focused Components Into Psychological Therapy

A Phase 2 interventional study of Psychological therapy (PT) as TAU with integrated emotion focused components (TAU - EFT) and Psychological therapy (PT) as TAU with focus on self-regulation (TAU - SR) in Unipolar Depression, Anxiety Disorder and Adjustment Disorder, sponsored by University of Bern. Completed at 1 site in Switzerland. Open to participants aged 18 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2019-09-10.

Sponsored by University of Bern · Phase 2, Interventional, and Treatment

Phase
Phase 2
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
104
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
18 Years and older
Sex
All
01

Study summary

The primary purpose of this study is to compare the efficacy of two treatment-as-usual (TAU) conditions: TAU with integration of emotion focused components (EFT) and TAU with focus on self-regulation (SR). Especially the long-term efficacy is evaluated with a focus on differential effects. Moreover, the mechanisms of change of both conditions are investigated.

Read the detailed description

Background:

"General Psychotherapy" postulates an ongoing process of including all interventions and concepts relevant for a domain, be they from other approaches to psychotherapy or concepts from basic science. "Psychological Therapy" (PT) is a therapeutic approach largely corresponding to the ideas of General Psychotherapy. It draws mainly on empirically validated interventions from Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) and is based on concepts with a strong basis in academic psychology and neighboring fields. PT is based on explicit individual case conceptualization, reference to general therapeutic factors, and an explicit prescriptive concept for building and maintaining the therapeutic relationship. However the range of emotion-related interventions commonly used in PT is limited when compared with an approach like Emotion Focused Therapy (EFT). EFT appears thus as a suitable complement and enrichment to PT as commonly practiced. However, effects of integrating EFT-based interventions in a way that is close to common integrative practice have not yet been studied.

Objective:

To compare the efficacy of two treatment-as-usual (TAU) conditions: TAU with integration of EFT components and TAU with focus on self-regulation (SR).

Methods:

In Switzerland, a randomized-controlled trail will be carried out in secondary care, comparing the efficacy of TAU - EFT and TAU - SR for adults with major depressive disorder, anxiety disorder or adjustment disorder. Respondents will be followed until 36 months after end of therapy (measures will be taken at baseline, after 8 and after 16 weeks, at the end of therapy after 25 weeks, 6 months, 12 months and 36 months follow-up).

02

Conditions studied

  • Unipolar Depression
  • Anxiety Disorder
  • Adjustment Disorder
03

In context

Depressive Disorder

855 studies on the registry are indexed under Depressive Disorder; 159 are open to participants now.

This study's enrollment of 104 is above the median of 88 across 689 interventional studies indexed under Depressive Disorder.

Browse Depressive Disorder studies →

Lead sponsor

University of Bern is the lead sponsor of 209 studies on the registry; 47 are open to participants now.

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

04

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

  • Major Depressive Disorder, Anxiety Disorder or Adjustment Disorder according to as main diagnosis
  • Minimum age of 18 years
  • Mastery of the German language for being able to undergo a psychotherapy in German
  • Written to participate voluntary in the study

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Acute suicidality or immediate threats of self-harm
  • Diagnosis or history of a psychotic disorder
  • Mood incongruent psychotic symptoms
  • Bipolar disorder
  • Comorbid chronic organic disorder
  • Substance use disorder as a main diagnosis
  • Indication for a residential treatment
Terms in these criteria, in plain language(2)

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.

Informed consent

Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.

You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.

05

Study design

Phase
Phase 2
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
Single (Participant)
Enrollment
104 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    TAU - EFT

    This arm integrates emotion focused components (EFT; Greenberg, 2010) into psychological therapy (PT) as treatment-as-usual (TAU), aiming at clarifying and transforming maladaptive emotions. 25 (+/- 3) weekly sessions and up to three booster sessions of face-to-face outpatient psychotherapy; psychological therapy with focus on emotion-focused interventions.

    Behavioral: Psychological therapy (PT) as TAU with integrated emotion focused components (TAU - EFT)

  • Experimental
    TAU - SR

    This arm focuses on the training of self-regulation strategies (SR; Carver \& Scheier, 2000) in the context of psychological therapy (PT) as treatment-as-usual (TAU). 25 (+/- 3) weekly sessions and up to three booster sessions of face-to-face outpatient psychotherapy; psychological therapy with focus on self-regulation without emotion-focused interventions.

    Behavioral: Psychological therapy (PT) as TAU with focus on self-regulation (TAU - SR)

Interventions

  • BehavioralPsychological therapy (PT) as TAU with integrated emotion focused components (TAU - EFT)

    25 (+/- 3) weekly sessions and up to three booster sessions of face-to-face outpatient psychotherapy; psychological therapy with focus on emotion-focused interventions.

  • BehavioralPsychological therapy (PT) as TAU with focus on self-regulation (TAU - SR)

    25 (+/- 3) weekly sessions and up to three booster sessions of face-to-face outpatient psychotherapy; psychological therapy with focus on self-regulation without emotion-focused interventions

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Change from baseline in symptom impairment measured by the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI; Franke, 2000)

    Time frame: After 8 weeks, after 16 weeks, end of therapy after 25 weeks, 6 months follow-up, 12 months follow-up and 36 months follow-up

  2. Change from baseline in depressive symptoms measured by the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II; Hautzinger et al., 2006)

    Time frame: After 8 weeks, after 16 weeks, end of therapy after 25 weeks, 6 months follow-up, 12 months follow-up and 36 months follow-up

  3. Change from baseline in anxiety symptoms measured by the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI; Ehlers & Margraf, 2007)

    Time frame: After 8 weeks, after 16 weeks, end of therapy after 25 weeks, 6 months follow-up, 12 months follow-up and 36 months follow-up

Secondary outcomes

  1. Severity of panic disorder and agoraphobia with the Panic and Agoraphobia Scale (PAS; Bandelow, 1997)

    Time frame: Baseline, after 8 weeks, after 16 weeks, end of therapy after 25 weeks, 6 months follow-up, 12 months follow-up and 36 months follow-up

  2. Severity of social phobia measured by the Social Phobia Scale SPS; Stangier et al., 1999)

    Time frame: Baseline, after 8 weeks, after 16 weeks, end of therapy after 25 weeks, 6 months follow-up, 12 months follow-up and 36 months follow-up

  3. Severity of social interaction anxiety measured by the Social Interaction Anxiety Scale (SIAS; Stangier et al., 1999)

    Time frame: Baseline, after 8 weeks, after 16 weeks, end of therapy after 25 weeks, 6 months follow-up, 12 months follow-up and 36 months follow-up

  4. Severity of anxiety symptoms measured by the Questionnaire for General Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7; Spitzer et al., 2006)

    Time frame: Baseline, after 8 weeks, after 16 weeks, end of therapy after 25 weeks, 6 months follow-up, 12 months follow-up and 36 months follow-up

  5. Psychological well-being measured with the WHO Well-Being Index (WHO-5; Henkel et al., 2004)

    Time frame: Baseline, after 8 weeks, after 16 weeks, end of therapy after 25 weeks, 6 months follow-up, 12 months follow-up and 36 months follow-up

  6. Health-related quality of life measured with the Short Form Healthy Survey (SF-12; Gandek et al., 1998)

    Time frame: Baseline, after 8 weeks, after 16 weeks, end of therapy after 25 weeks, 6 months follow-up, 12 months follow-up and 36 months follow-up

  7. Motivational schemata measured by the Questionnaire for Analysis of Motivational Schemata (FAMOS; grosse Holtforth & Grawe, 2000)

    Time frame: Baseline, end of therapy after 25 weeks

  8. Motivational incongruence measured by the Incongruence Questionnaire (K-INK; grosse Holtforth et al., 2003)

    Time frame: Baseline, after 8 weeks, after 16 weeks, end of therapy after 25 weeks, 6 months follow-up, 12 months follow-up and 36 months follow-up

  9. Interpersonal problems measured by the Inventory of Interpersonal Problems (IIP-32; Thomas et al., 2011)

    Time frame: Baseline, after 8 weeks, after 16 weeks, end of therapy after 25 weeks, 6 months follow-up, 12 months follow-up and 36 months follow-up

  10. Personality structure measured by the Operationalized Psychodynamic Diagnosis Structure Questionnaire (OPD-SFK; Ehrenthal et al., 2012)

    Time frame: Baseline, end of therapy after 25 weeks

  11. Personality traits measured by the Inventory of Personality Organization (IPO-16; Zimmermann et al., 2013)

    Time frame: Baseline

  12. Ambivalence over emotional expressiveness measured by the Ambivalence over the Expression of Emotion Scale (AVEX; Trachsel et al., 2010)

    Time frame: Baseline, end of therapy after 25 weeks

  13. Emotional competency measured by the Questionnaire for the self-assessment of emotional competencies (SEK-27; Berking & Znoj, 2008)

    Time frame: Baseline, end of therapy after 25 weeks

  14. Generalized expectancies for negative mood regulation measured by the Negative Mood Regulation Scale (NMR-SF; Pfeiffer et al., 2013)

    Time frame: Baseline, end of therapy after 25 weeks

  15. Psychological flexibility measured by the Acceptance and Action Questionnaire (Fragebogen zu Akzeptanz und Handeln; FAH-II; Gloster et al., 2013)

    Time frame: Baseline, end of therapy after 25 weeks

  16. General self-efficacy measured by the General Self-Efficacy Scale (SWE; Schwarzer & Jerusalem, 1999)

    Time frame: Baseline, end of therapy after 25 weeks

  17. Therapy evaluation and outcome expectancies measured by the Patient Questionnaire on Therapy Expectation and Evaluation (PATHEV; Schulte, 2005)

    Time frame: Baseline

  18. Social desirability measured by the Balanced Inventory of Desirable Responding (BIDR-K; Winkler et al., 2006)

    Time frame: Baseline

  19. Client satisfaction measured by the Brief Global Measure of Client Satisfaction (ZUF-8; Schmidt & Wittmann, 2002)

    Time frame: After 8 weeks, after 16 weeks, end of therapy after 25 weeks, 6 months follow-up, 12 months follow-up and 36 months follow-up

  20. External assessment of interpersonal personality measured by the Impact Message Inventory (IMI-R; Caspar et al. 2002)

    Time frame: Baseline, end of therapy after 25 weeks

  21. External assessment of resources measured by the Bernese Inventory of Resources (REF-F and REF-T; Tröske, 2000)

    Time frame: Baseline, end of therapy after 25 weeks

  22. External assessment of positive interpersonal qualities measured by the Inventory of Interpersonal Strengths (IIS; Hatcher & Rogers, 2012)

    Time frame: Baseline, end of therapy after 25 weeks

  23. Goal attainment measured by the Goal Attainment Scaling (GAS; Kirusek, 1994)

    Time frame: After 8 weeks, after 16 weeks, end of therapy after 25 weeks, 6 months follow-up, 12 months follow-up and 36 months follow-up

  24. Regular quality monitoring with the Bern Post Session Report, Patient and Therapist Version (BPSR-P/T; Flückiger et al. 2010)

    Time frame: Weekly until 25 weeks

  25. Symptom impairment measured by the Symptom Checklist (SCL-9; Bogerts et al., 2001)

    Time frame: Weekly until 25 weeks

  26. Implicit motives measured by the Picture-Story-Exercise - Online Version (PSE-O: Bernecker & Jobst, 2013)

    Time frame: Baseline, end of therapy after 25 weeks

07

Study locations

1 site
  • University of Bern
    Bern, Switzerland
08

References and documents

Publications

  • Babl A, Grosse Holtforth M, Heer S, Lin M, Stahli A, Holstein D, Belz M, Egenolf Y, Frischknecht E, Ramseyer F, Regli D, Schmied E, Fluckiger C, Brodbeck J, Berger T, Caspar F. Psychotherapy integration under scrutiny: investigating the impact of integrating emotion-focused components into a CBT-based approach: a study protocol of a randomized controlled trial. BMC Psychiatry. 2016 Nov 24;16(1):423. doi: 10.1186/s12888-016-1136-7. PubMed 27881113 ↗

Individual participant data

Plan to share: No

09

Updates

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Sep 10, 2019, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
10

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT02822443
Lead sponsor
University of Bern
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Jul 4, 2016
Start date
Apr 2015
Primary completion
Jul 2018
Completion
Aug 2019
Last update
Sep 10, 2019

Study contacts

Franz Caspar, Prof. PhD
principal investigator · University of Bern, Switzerland

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
Yes
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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This study is completed, as verified in Sep 2019. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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