An interventional study of IAT in Attachment Disorder, sponsored by Boston University Charles River Campus. Not yet recruiting at 1 site in United States. Open to participants aged 18 Years to 65 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-11-10.
Sponsored by Boston University Charles River Campus · Not applicable, Interventional, and Supportive care
This pilot randomized waitlist-controlled study will evaluate the feasibility and preliminary effects of a 12-week Integrated Attachment Theory (IAT) psychoeducational coaching program in adults ages 18-65 with an insecure attachment pattern identified through study screening.
Eligible participants will be randomized 1:1 to immediate IAT or a 12-week waitlist followed by IAT. The immediate group will complete in-person Boston University assessments before and after IAT; the waitlist group will complete assessments at baseline, after the 12-week waiting period, and after subsequently completing IAT.
The primary objectives are to determine whether the study procedures and intervention are feasible and to estimate the magnitude and variability of pre/post changes. The investigators hypothesize that IAT will be associated with improvement in attachment-related patterns, emotion regulation, interpersonal functioning, and well-being, together with changes in physiological and cortical responses during attachment-related emotion regulation compared with the waitlist period.
Boston University Charles River Campus is the lead sponsor of 159 studies on the registry; 33 are open to participants now.
Of its 14 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 9 (64%) have results posted.
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Exclusion Criteria:
Participants randomized to this arm will immediately receive the 12 week IAT intervention.
Behavioral: IAT
Participants randomized to this arm will be put on a 12 week waitlist and after will receive the IAT intervention.
Behavioral: IAT
IAT provides12 consecutive weekly remote Zoom sessions delivered by Personal Development School (PDS). Each session lasts approximately 2.5 hours with about 90 minutes of teaching plus 1 hour of supervised support. Participants will work in small breakout rooms with two participants per room during the support portion. The 12-week curriculum addresses core beliefs, relationship needs, emotional/nervous-system patterns, communication, boundaries, and behaviors. Participants will also complete approximately 10 minutes of daily skills practice/homework.
Feasibility of IAT intervention
Feasibility will be assessed using intervention and study completion. The number and percentage of participants assigned to IAT who complete the 12-week IAT program and the corresponding post-intervention research assessment will be calculated. Higher completion/retention rates will indicate greater feasibility.
Time frame: baseline through 12 weeks
Change in attachment
Attachment will be assessed using the self-report Personal Development School (PDS) Attachment-Style Questionnaire administered at baseline and again at the post-intervention assessment. The questionnaire characterizes participants' attachment patterns, including secure and insecure attachment styles. Change from baseline to 12 weeks will be evaluated, with movement toward greater attachment security interpreted as improvement.
Time frame: baseline and 12 weeks
Change in emotion regulation, measured by the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS-36)
Emotion regulation will be assessed using the 36-item self-report Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS-36). Items are rated on a 5-point scale from 1 (almost never) to 5 (almost always). The total score ranges from 36 to 180. Higher scores indicate greater difficulties with emotion regulation; therefore, a decrease in score from baseline indicates improvement in emotion regulation.
Time frame: baseline and 12 weeks
Change in interpersonal functioning, measured by the Inventory of Interpersonal Problems-32 (IIP-32)
Interpersonal functioning will be assessed using the 32-item self-report Inventory of Interpersonal Problems, Short Form (IIP-32). Items are rated from 0 (not at all) to 4 (very much) and assess difficulties across eight interpersonal domains. Higher scores indicate greater interpersonal difficulties; therefore, a decrease from baseline indicates improvement in interpersonal functioning.
Time frame: baseline and 12 weeks
Change in well-being, measured by the WHO-5 Well-Being Index
Well-being will be assessed using the 5-item self-report World Health Organization 5 (WHO-5) Well-Being Index. Each item is rated from 0 to 5. Raw scores range from 0 to 25 and are multiplied by 4 to yield a score from 0 to 100. Higher scores indicate better well-being; therefore, an increase from baseline indicates improvement.
Time frame: baseline and 12 weeks
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 ↗
This study is not yet recruiting, as verified in Nov 2026. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.
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