An interventional study of Group schema therapy and Treatment as Usual (TAU) in Borderline Symptoms and Borderline Personality Disorder, sponsored by Turku University Hospital. Recruiting at 1 site in Finland. Open to participants aged 15 Years to 22 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-08-21.
Sponsored by Turku University Hospital · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment
The goal of this randomized and controlled trial is to assess the effectiveness of group schema therapy in the treatment of adolescents with borderline symptoms. The intervention utilizes self-recorded video material as an experiential method. The intervention comprises 30 group sessions and 8 individual sessions. Additionally, there are group sessions for the participants' parents. Participants in the control group receive treatment as usual.
The goal of this randomized and controlled intervention study is to assess the effectiveness of group schema therapy in the treatment of adolescents with borderline symptoms. Borderline personality disorder (BPD) is a severe and chronic mental health disorder, which features are typically detectable already in adolescence. BPD causes considerable suffering and functional impairment. Treatment recommendations emphasize treating BPD with targeted interventions already in adolescence, but evidence-based treatments in this age group are so far scarce.
The research sample consists of 32 adolescents who participate in a group schema therapy intervention and their 32 controls. The participants are adolescents aged 15-22 who are being treated either at the Adolescent Psychiatry Clinic or Psychiatry Clinic at the Turku University Hospital. The subjects meet at least three diagnostic criteria for BPD based on SCID-II assessment. Adolescents who are at serious suicide risk or with, for example, psychotic symptoms, or another disorder or symptom that endangers commitment to the intervention protocol, are excluded from the study.
The studied intervention is based on Farrell and Shaw's group schema therapy model. The experiential part of the model is strengthened utilizing videos, which are recorded by the participants (VideoTalk). The videos are used to support both individual and group work. The intervention is tailored to be developmentally sensitive for this age group and reinforced with a module to which the participants' parents participate.
The intervention comprises 30 weekly group sessions and 8 individual sessions. Eight adolescents participate in one group, and four groups are carried out during the study. The participants' parents have 9 group sessions, some of which the adolescents also participate in. The duration of the intervention is approximately one year. The control group receives treatment as usual.
Both the intervention and control groups response to the research questionnaires at five time points (baseline, 3 months, 6 months, 12 months, 2 years). The primary response variable is the change in the BPD symptoms between entering the study and the end of the intervention. As secondary response variables, changes in, for example, the participants' early maladaptive schemas, schema modes, and depressive and anxiety symptoms are assessed. After the end of the intervention, the study includes a one-year follow-up period and two years after the intervention, follow-up data is collected from the participants' medical reports. The study also includes qualitative sub-studies.
The intervention groups will be carried out during the years 2025-2027. A new group is always started overlapping with the previous group. Results regarding the primary response variable will be completed at the end of 2027. The entire research material will be completed at the end of 2029.
278 studies on the registry are indexed under Borderline Personality Disorder; 70 are open to participants now.
This study's planned enrollment of 64 is close to the median of 70 across 221 interventional studies indexed under Borderline Personality Disorder.
Browse Borderline Personality Disorder studies →Turku University Hospital is the lead sponsor of 287 studies on the registry; 67 are open to participants now.
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Exclusion Criteria:
The group schema therapy intervention includes 30 group sessions and 8 individual sessions for the participants, and 9 group sessions for the participants' parents.
Behavioral: Group schema therapy
Treatment as usual
Behavioral: Treatment as Usual (TAU)
Group schema therapy based on the model by Farrell and Shaw, which is complemented with separate group sessions for the participants' parents
TAU typically comprises visits at the outpatient clinic with variable frequency and content
Borderline Symptom List - Short version
Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 12 months
Young Schema Questionnaire Short Form 2 -Extended
Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 12 months
Schema Mode Inventory
Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 12 months
Patient Health Questionnaire-9
Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 12 months
Child and Adolescent Trauma Screen
Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 12 months
General Anxiety Disorder-7
Time frame: From enrollment to the end of treatment at 12 months
Plan to share: No
No publications or documents are linked to this record.
Started Aug 2025 (actual). Primary completion is estimated for Dec 2027, 28 months after the start.
Of 105 non-industry interventional studies with no phase under Borderline Personality Disorder, half reached primary completion within 35 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 24 and three quarters within 54. This study's planned 28 months is below that.
Counting every sponsor, half of 107 studies reached it within 35 months; a quarter within 24 and three quarters within 54.
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Borderline Personality Disorder →