Brief Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Reducing Suicidal Ideation in Economically Distressed Migrants

Browse trials for

• Suicidal Ideation 515
• Depression 8,057
• Anxiety Disorders 4,868
• Financial Stress 93

Keywords

• Suicidal Ideation
• Migrant Workers
• Brief Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
• Financial Stress

Suicidal Ideation

515 studies on the registry are indexed under Suicidal Ideation; 195 are open to participants now.

This study's enrollment of 120 is above the median of 80 across 426 interventional studies indexed under Suicidal Ideation.

Lead sponsor

Bath Spa University Academic Centre RAK is the lead sponsor of 2 studies on the registry; none are open to participants now.

Study arms

• Experimental
  Brief CBT

  Participants assigned to this arm received an 8-session culturally adapted Brief Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (Brief CBT). Sessions addressed crisis stabilization, cognitive restructuring, problem-solving related to financial stressors, behavioral activation, emotion regulation skills, relapse prevention, and linkage to community resources. Sessions were delivered weekly, either individually (60 minutes) or in groups (90 minutes), based on participant preference.

  Behavioral: Brief Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

• No intervention
  Treatment as Usual (TAU)

  Participants assigned to this arm received standard community resources and information without structured therapeutic intervention. They were provided with a comprehensive multilingual list of available mental health services, crisis support hotlines, and financial counseling resources accessible in the UAE. Participants were free to access these services independently, without active facilitation or structured guidance by the research team. This arm represents the standard of care typically available to economically distressed migrant workers experiencing mental health difficulties in the region.

Interventions

• BehavioralBrief Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

  Participants received an 8-session culturally adapted Brief Cognitive Behavioral Therapy intervention targeting suicidal ideation, psychological distress, and financial stress. Therapy included crisis stabilization, cognitive restructuring of maladaptive thoughts related to economic hardship, behavioral activation, problem-solving skills for financial and psychosocial stressors, and emotion-regulation training. It concluded with relapse prevention planning and connection to supportive community resources. Sessions were delivered weekly, either individually (60 minutes) or in groups (90 minutes), based on participant preference.

Primary outcomes

1. Reduction in Suicidal Ideation Severity (Beck Scale for Suicide Ideation; BSS)

   Change in the severity of suicidal ideation as measured by the Beck Scale for Suicide Ideation (BSS), a 19-item clinician-rated scale that assesses suicidal thoughts, plans, and wishes during the past week. Scores range from 0 to 38, with higher scores indicating greater suicidal ideation severity.

   Time frame: Baseline, 4 weeks (mid-treatment), 8 weeks (post-treatment), and 3-month follow-up

Publications

• Kroenke K, Spitzer RL, Williams JB. The PHQ-9: validity of a brief depression severity measure. J Gen Intern Med. 2001 Sep;16(9):606-13. doi: 10.1046/j.1525-1497.2001.016009606.x. PubMed 11556941 ↗
• Bryan CJ, Rudd MD. Brief Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Suicide Prevention. New York: The Guilford Press; 2018.
• Prawitz AD, Garman ET, Sorhaindo B, O'Neill B, Kim J, Drentea P. InCharge Financial Distress/Financial Well-Being Scale: Development, administration, and score interpretation. Journal of Financial Counseling and Planning. 2006;17(1):34-50.
• Lovibond SH, Lovibond PF. Manual for the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales. 2nd ed. Sydney: Psychology Foundation; 1995.
• Beck AT, Steer RA, Ranieri WF. Scale for Suicide Ideation: psychometric properties of a self-report version. J Clin Psychol. 1988 Jul;44(4):499-505. doi: 10.1002/1097-4679(198807)44:43.0.co;2-6. PubMed 3170753 ↗

Individual participant data

Plan to share: No