An interventional study of Compassion-Based Family Intervention in Emotional Disorder, sponsored by Beijing HuiLongGuan Hospital. Recruiting at 1 site in China. Open to participants aged 12 Years to 18 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-09-30.
Sponsored by Beijing HuiLongGuan Hospital · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment
Adolescents with emotional disorders often experience psychological distress that may also affect their parents, creating bidirectional stress within the family. This randomized waitlist-controlled trial will evaluate a 6-week compassion-based family intervention involving adolescents and their parents. A total of 60 parent-adolescent dyads will be randomly assigned to either an intervention group or a waitlist control group. The primary outcomes are adolescents' depressive and anxiety symptoms. Secondary outcomes include broader psychological and family-related measures. Parent-child neural and physiological synchrony will also be explored using fNIRS hyperscanning and wearable devices. Assessments will be conducted at baseline, post-intervention, and 3-month and 6-month follow-ups.
This is a parallel-group, randomized waitlist-controlled trial with a 1:1 allocation ratio. A total of 60 parent-adolescent dyads, including adolescents aged 12-18 years with emotional disorders and one participating parent, will be recruited from the Fourth People's Hospital of Hefei, China. After baseline assessment, dyads will be randomly assigned to either the intervention group (IG) or the waitlist control group (WL) using a computer-generated randomization sequence (SAS 9.4 PROC PLAN). The allocation sequence will be prepared by an independent researcher who is not involved in participant recruitment, enrollment, intervention delivery, or outcome assessment. Participants will not be explicitly informed of their group allocation; however, complete participant blinding cannot be guaranteed because the timing of intervention initiation differs between groups. Outcome assessors will remain blinded to group allocation.
The IG will receive a 6-week compassion-based family intervention consisting of weekly 120-minute sessions. The program includes separate sessions for parents and adolescents during the first three weeks and joint family sessions during the final three weeks. The WL will receive no study intervention during the 6-week waiting period and will subsequently receive the same intervention.
Assessments will be conducted at baseline, post-intervention, and 3-month and 6-month follow-ups. The primary outcomes are adolescents' depressive symptoms, assessed using the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI), and anxiety symptoms, assessed using the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI). Secondary outcomes include compassion-related, parenting, parent-child relationship, emotional, and other family-related psychological measures. Parent-child neural and physiological synchrony assessed using fNIRS hyperscanning and wearable devices will be examined as exploratory mechanistic outcomes.
Primary efficacy analyses will follow the intention-to-treat principle and compare changes from baseline to post-intervention between the IG and WL using linear mixed models. Bonferroni correction will be applied across the two primary outcomes, while the Benjamini-Hochberg false discovery rate procedure will be used for secondary outcomes. Follow-up analyses will examine the maintenance of intervention-related changes, and fNIRS and HRV outcomes will be analyzed separately as exploratory outcomes with correction for multiple comparisons.
The study has been approved by the Ethics Committee of the Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (approval number H25123).
Beijing HuiLongGuan Hospital is the lead sponsor of 22 studies on the registry; 5 are open to participants now.
Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.
The criteria were revised on the registry on Sep 30, 2026. See what changed
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:
Participants receive a 6-week compassion-based family intervention (one 120-min session per week).
Other: Compassion-Based Family Intervention
Participants receive no intervention during the 6-week waiting period and then receive the same intervention after the waiting period.
A 6-week program (120 minutes weekly) combining theoretical content and group activities, with additional home practice (emotion diaries and meditation). Content focuses on cultivating self-compassion and compassion for others, developing inward awareness and outward observation, improving perspective-taking and communication skills, and managing conflict within the family. Weekly themes: Week 1 "Setting Sail Together, Understanding Love in Thought and Action"; Week 2 "Inward Awareness, Resonance of Body and Mind"; Week 3 "Outward Observation, Seeing One Another Clearly"; Week 4 "Shifting Perspectives, Bridging Boundaries"; Week 5 "Perspective-Taking, Managing Conflict"; Week 6 "Harnessing Compassion, Bringing Love Home."
Children's depression levels
Children's depression levels will be assessed using the Children's Depression Inventory (CDI). The total score of 27 items will be calculated, with each item scored from 0 to 2. Higher scores indicate more severe depressive symptoms.
Time frame: baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3, 6 month follow-up
Children's anxiety levels
Children's anxiety levels will be assessed using the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI). The total score of 21 items will be calculated, with each item scored from 0 to 3. Higher scores indicate more severe anxiety.
Time frame: baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3, 6 month follow-up
Self-Compassion
The self-compassion levels of both parents and adolescents will be assessed using the Self-Compassion Scale (SCS). The mean score (ranging from 1 to 5 per item) will be calculated. Higher scores indicate greater self-compassion.
Time frame: baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3, 6 month follow-up
Fears of Compassion
The fear of compassion levels of both parents and adolescents will be assessed using the Fears of Compassion Scales (FCS). The total score of the three subscales (ranging from 0 to 4 per item) of Fear of Compassion for Self, Fear of Compassion for Others, and Fear of Receiving Compassion from Others will be calculated. Higher scores indicate greater fear of compassion.
Time frame: baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3, 6 month follow-up
Perceived emotional synchrony
The emotional synchrony of both parents and adolescents will be assessed using the Perceived Emotional Synchrony Scale (PESS). The mean score of the two subscales (ranging from 1 to 7 per item) of Emotional Communion and Felt Unity will be calculated. Higher scores indicate greater perceived emotional synchrony.
Time frame: baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3, 6 month follow-up
Parenting stress
Parenting stress will be assessed using the Parenting Stress Index-Short Form (PSI-SF). The total score of 36 items will be calculated, with each item scored from 1 to 5. Higher scores indicate greater parenting stress.
Time frame: baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3, 6 month follow-up
Parenting styles
Parenting styles will be assessed using the Parenting Scale-7 (PS-7) and the Egna Minnen Beträffande Uppfostran (EMBU), Swedish for "My Memories of Upbringing", from the perspectives of parents and adolescents, respectively. For the PS-7, the mean score (ranging from 1 to 7 per item) will be calculated. Lower scores indicate better parenting behavior. For the EMBU, the total scores of the subscales Rejection, Emotional Warmth, and Overprotection will be calculated. Higher Rejection and Overprotection scores indicate worse outcomes, whereas higher Emotional Warmth scores indicate better outcomes.
Time frame: baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3, 6 month follow-up
Parent-child relationships
The parent-child relationship will be assessed using Child-Parent Relationship Scale, 30-item version (CPRS-30) and the Remembered Relationship with Parents, 10-item scale (RRP-10) from the perspectives of parents and adolescents, respectively. For the CPRS-30, the mean scores of the three subscales (ranging from 1 to 5 per item) for Closeness, Conflict, and Dependence will be calculated. Higher Closeness indicates a better relationship, whereas higher Conflict and higher Dependence indicate worse outcomes. For the RRP-10, the total score of the 10 items (ranging from 0 to 4 per item) will be calculated. Higher scores indicate more negative remembered relationships with parents.
Time frame: baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3, 6 month follow-up
Parental Burnout
Parental burnout will be assessed using the Parental Burnout Assessment (PBA). The total score of the 23 items (ranging from 0 to 6 per item) including four dimensions (exhaustion in one's parental role, contrast with previous parental self, feelings of being fed up with one's parental role, and emotional distancing from one's children) will be calculated. Higher scores indicate greater parental burnout.
Time frame: baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3, 6 month follow-up
Parental self-stigmatization
Parental self-stigmatization will be assessed using the Self-Stigma in Relatives of people with Mental Illness Scale (SSRMI). The mean score of the 30 items (ranging from 1 to 5 per item) will be calculated. Higher scores indicate greater self-stigma among parents.
Time frame: baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3, 6 month follow-up
Perceived Criticism
The parent's perceived criticism will be assessed using the Perceived Criticism Measure (PCM). The PCM criticism item is rated on a scale ranging from 1 (not at all) to 10 (very critical). Higher scores indicate greater perceived criticism.
Time frame: baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3, 6 month follow-up
Adolescents' expressed emotion
The expressed emotion of adolescents will be assessed using the Concise Chinese Level of Expressed Emotion Scale (CCLEES). The mean score of the 12 items (ranging from 1 to 4 per item) will be calculated. Higher scores indicate higher expressed emotion.
Time frame: baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3, 6 month follow-up
Family Expressiveness
The family expressiveness of both parents and adolescents will be assessed using the Family Expressiveness Questionnaire (FEQ). The mean score of the 20 items (ranging from 1 to 9 per item) will be calculated. Higher scores indicate more frequent family emotional expressiveness; when reporting Positive and Negative Expressiveness subscales, higher Positive Expressiveness scores are considered better, whereas higher Negative Expressiveness scores are considered worse.
Time frame: baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3, 6 month follow-up
Emotion Regulation
The emotion regulation of both parents and adolescents will be assessed using the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire-Short Form (ERQ-S), a 6-item version. The mean score of the two subscales (ranging from 1 to 7 per item) of Cognitive Reappraisal (4 items) and Expressive Suppression (2 items) will be calculated. Higher Cognitive Reappraisal scores indicate more frequent use of cognitive reappraisal, whereas higher Expressive Suppression scores indicate more frequent use of expressive suppression.
Time frame: baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3, 6 month follow-up
Nonclinging to Ego
Nonclinging to ego in both parents and adolescents will be assessed using the Nonclinging to Ego Scale (NCES). The total score of the 33 items (ranging from 1 to 6 per item) will be calculated. Higher scores indicate greater nonattachment to self.
Time frame: baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3, 6 month follow-up
Parent-child neural synchrony (fNIRS hyperscanning)
The fNIRS measures are designated as exploratory mechanistic outcomes to investigate potential intervention-related changes in parent-child neural synchrony. Wavelet transform coherence (WTC) will be computed from oxygenated hemoglobin (HbO) and deoxygenated hemoglobin (HbR) signals measured during the emotional video co-viewing task. WTC values in the 0.02-0.1 Hz frequency band will be used to quantify brain-to-brain synchrony. Higher coherence indicates stronger neural synchrony.
Time frame: baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3, 6 month follow-up
Parent-child physiological synchrony (HRV)
The HRV measures are designated as exploratory mechanistic outcomes to investigate potential intervention-related changes in parent-child physiological synchrony. HRV metrics will be derived from inter-beat interval recordings obtained using Huawei Band 8 wearable devices. Parent-child physiological synchrony will be quantified using the cross-correlation function applied to the HRV time series for each parent-child dyad.
Time frame: baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3, 6 month follow-up
Plan to share: No — The datasets generated and/or analyzed during the current study are not publicly available due to ethical restrictions (as they contain information that could compromise participant privacy), but will be available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request after completion of the study and approval by the ethics committee.
No publications or documents are linked to this record.
From the registry record's own update history. This site started tracking changes on Sep 25, 2026; for anything earlier, see the record history on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
Eligibility is decided by the study team. Share this record with your doctor or contact the team directly.
Contact study teamGet an email when the registry record changes — status, dates, results — or when someone posts here.
Sign in to followQuestions and observations about this study, from anyone following it. Not medical advice, and not a channel to the study team — their contact details are on the registry record.
Sign in to join the discussion. Reading takes no account; posting does. You choose a display name, and a pseudonym is the default.
Nothing here yet. If you are running this trial, taking part in it, or weighing whether to, this is the place to say so.
Beijing HuiLongGuan Hospital