An interventional study of Ericksonian Hypnotherapy in Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD), Anxiety Disorders and Psychophysiological Disorders, sponsored by Uskudar University. Recruiting at 1 site in Turkey. Open to participants aged 18 Years to 65 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2025-02-20.
Sponsored by Uskudar University · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment
This study examines the neurophysiological and psychological effects of Ericksonian hypnotherapy in individuals diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD). Using electroencephalography (EEG), the study aims to assess changes in brain activity and anxiety symptoms before and after treatment.
A total of 60 participants will be recruited from both governmental and private psychiatric clinics in Istanbul. Participants will be randomly assigned to either the intervention group (receiving 12 Ericksonian hypnotherapy sessions over 12 weeks) or the control group (receiving no intervention).
The primary outcome measures include changes in EEG patterns, specifically alpha, theta, and frontal asymmetry indices, and changes in anxiety severity, measured by the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). Secondary measures include emotional regulation (DERS) and quality of life (WHOQOL-BREF).
This study aims to provide scientific evidence on the effectiveness of Ericksonian hypnotherapy as a complementary treatment for GAD and its impact on brain function and emotional well-being.
This study investigates the neurophysiological and psychological effects of Ericksonian hypnotherapy in individuals diagnosed with Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) using electroencephalography (EEG). The research aims to determine whether Ericksonian hypnotherapy produces measurable changes in brain activity and anxiety symptoms.
A total of 60 participants (30 per group) will be recruited from both governmental and private psychiatric clinics in Istanbul. Participants will be diagnosed with GAD based on DSM-5 criteria and will undergo structured psychiatric evaluation before inclusion.
Study Design Intervention Group (n = 30): Participants will receive 12 individual Ericksonian hypnotherapy sessions, each lasting 90 minutes, delivered over 12 weeks. The hypnotherapy protocol will include permissive language, metaphorical storytelling, and indirect suggestions tailored to anxiety-related cognitive and emotional patterns.
Control Group (n = 30): Participants will receive no psychological intervention during the study period.
Both groups will undergo baseline and post-intervention EEG measurements and complete psychological assessments.
Primary Outcome Measures:
EEG Changes: Resting-state and task-based EEG recordings will be analyzed for alpha, theta power, frontal asymmetry indices, and event-related potentials (ERPs: P300, N200) to assess neurophysiological effects of hypnotherapy.
Anxiety Severity: Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) will be used to measure anxiety symptom changes.
Secondary Outcome Measures:
Emotional Regulation: Measured using the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS).
Quality of Life: Evaluated with the World Health Organization Quality of Life Scale (WHOQOL-BREF).
Timeline:
Recruitment Period: February 1, 2025 - March 15, 2025 Baseline Assessments: March 2025 Intervention Period: April 1, 2025 - June 2025 Post-Intervention Assessments: July 2025 This study aims to provide scientific evidence on the efficacy of Ericksonian hypnotherapy as a complementary treatment for Generalized Anxiety Disorder by evaluating both neurophysiological and psychological changes. Findings may contribute to the development of alternative therapeutic approaches for anxiety disorders.
517 studies on the registry are indexed under Generalized Anxiety Disorder; 124 are open to participants now.
This study's planned enrollment of 60 is below the median of 83 across 439 interventional studies indexed under Generalized Anxiety Disorder.
Browse Generalized Anxiety Disorder studies →Uskudar University is the lead sponsor of 170 studies on the registry; 36 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.
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.
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.
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.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Participants in this group will receive 12 individual Ericksonian hypnotherapy sessions, each lasting 90 minutes, over a 12-week period. The hypnotherapy will be delivered by trained clinicians and will incorporate permissive language, metaphorical storytelling, and indirect suggestions tailored to address cognitive and emotional patterns associated with Generalized Anxiety Disorder.
Behavioral: Ericksonian Hypnotherapy
Participants in this group will receive no psychological intervention during the study period. They will continue their usual daily routines without structured psychotherapy, hypnosis, or additional psychological treatment. They will complete baseline and post-study assessments without receiving active treatment.
Ericksonian hypnotherapy is a therapeutic approach that utilizes indirect suggestion, storytelling, and metaphorical language to induce a trance state and facilitate psychological change. This intervention aims to reduce anxiety symptoms, improve emotional regulation, and alter neurophysiological responses as measured by EEG. Participants will undergo 12 individual sessions, each lasting 90 minutes, over a period of 12 weeks.
EEG Changes in Brain Activity
Measure: Changes in alpha, theta power, and frontal asymmetry indices before and after intervention Description: EEG will be used to assess changes in resting-state brain activity and event-related potentials (ERPs: P300, N200), evaluating neurophysiological effects of Ericksonian hypnotherapy.
Time frame: Baseline (Pre-intervention) and Post-intervention (12 weeks)
Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI)
Change in BAI scores (0-63, higher scores indicate more severe anxiety).
Time frame: Baseline and Post-intervention (12 weeks)
Generalized Anxiety Severity (Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7, GAD-7)
Change in GAD-7 scores (0-21, higher scores indicate more severe anxiety)
Time frame: Baseline and Post-intervention (12 weeks)
State and Trait Anxiety Levels (State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, STAI)
Change in STAI scores (20-80, higher scores indicate greater anxiety).
Time frame: Baseline and Post-intervention (12 weeks)
Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale, (DERS)
Change in DERS scores (36-180, higher scores indicate greater emotion regulation difficulties).
Time frame: Baseline and Post-intervention (12 weeks)
World Health Organization Quality of Life Scale, (WHOQOL-BREF)
Change in WHOQOL-BREF scores (0-100, higher scores indicate better quality of life).
Time frame: Baseline and Post-intervention (12 weeks)
Plan to share: Yes — De-identified EEG data and psychological assessment scores will be shared with qualified researchers upon reasonable request. Data will be made available after study completion and publication of results, following approval by the ethics committee. Data access will be granted through a secure repository or institutional agreement.
Supporting information: Study protocol, Statistical analysis plan, Clinical study report, Analytic code
Time frame: After the results will be published in a peer review SSCI indexed journal
Access criteria: Access to de-identified EEG and psychological assessment data will be granted to qualified researchers affiliated with recognized academic institutions or research organizations. Researchers must submit a formal data request, including a research proposal, to the study's principal investigator. Approved requests will receive access via a secure repository or institutional agreement, subject to ethical and data protection compliance.
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Generalized Anxiety Disorder →