People with intellectual disabilities (ID) often suffer from psychopathological symptoms and are rarely treated psychotherapeutically. Concurrently, there is a lack of studies summarizing the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) for adults with ID and co-morbid psychopathological symptoms. A literature search identified CBT-trials focusing on the outcome domains anxiety, depression, and anger in adults with ID (IQ 20-69). A meta-analysis with subgroup analyses was conducted. Controlled trials showed significant effects for the outcome domains depression (d = 0.65; eight studies; 95% confidence interval, CI [0.24, 1.07]) and anger (d = 0.65; six studies; 95% CI [0.25, 1.06]), and a small and nonsignificant effect for anxiety (d = 0.25; four studies; 95% CI [0.00, 0.49]). Due to only a moderate number of trials and limited methodological quality, larger and more rigorous trials are needed to support the preliminary evidence for the efficacy of CBT for individuals with ID. Public Health Significance StatementThe meta-analysis showed significant effects of controlled trials regarding the efficacy of cognitivebehavioral therapies for people with intellectual disabilities suffering from depressive symptoms and anger. The quality of the included studies was moderate, and heterogeneity was partially high. Indications for different levels of intellectual disabilities should be developed, as most of the available treatment options are focused on mild intellectual disabilities.

Zusammenfassung. Der Affective Style Questionnaire (ASQ) wurde aus dem Englischen übersetzt und an einer studentischen Stichprobe (N = 640) validiert. Der ASQ ist ein Selbstbeurteilungsinstrument bestehend aus 20 Items, in dem drei allgemeine Emotionsregulationsstile erfasst werden: Unterdrücken, Anpassen/Neubewerten und Akzeptieren. Die faktorielle Struktur wurde mithilfe des ESEM-Verfahrens (Exploratory Structural Equation Modeling) überprüft. Die Ergebnisse konnten die Faktorenstruktur der englischen Vorlage bestätigen. Die Testgütekriterien, die Konstruktvalidität und demographische Einflüsse wurden untersucht. Die internen Konsistenzen erwiesen sich als zufriedenstellend (Unterdrücken-Skala: α = .84; Anpassen-Skala: α = .75; Akzeptieren-Skala: α = .72), was ebenfalls sehr nahe an den Werten der Originalstudie liegt. Die Subskalen wiesen hypothesenkonforme Zusammenhänge zu bestehenden Verfahren aus dem Forschungsbereich „Emotionsregulation” auf. Der deutschsprachige ASQ ist ein ökonomisches Instrument in einem Bereich, in dem es erst sehr wenige validierte Verfahren gibt. Kein bestehendes Verfahren erfasst die drei genannten Stile in zufriedenstellender Weise gemeinsam. Mögliche Einsatzbereiche sind in der gesunden Allgemeinbevölkerung und nach weiterer Validierung auch in klinischen Populationen anzusehen.

Further studies are needed to confirm the promising effects of CBIs and LKM. Preliminary evidence suggests that both approaches might be beneficial across various clinical populations. Future studies need to clarify whether these approaches might be options as stand-alone treatments or as adjuncts or augmentation of evidence-based methods in psychotherapy.

In this pilot study, N = 11 patients suffering from chronic depression were treated in a 12-week group program consisting of basic mindfulness exercises from Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy and compassion exercises from Compassion Focused Therapy and Loving Kindness Meditation. In a 3-month waiting period prior to treatment, depression symptoms both in self-report and clinician rating did not change significantly. After treatment, depression severity was significantly reduced. After a 3-month follow-up, the symptoms further improved, with almost large effect sizes being observed in primary outcome measures.Changes in emotion regulation styles reflected by a significant increase in acceptance and significant decrease in suppression of emotions were observed at follow-up. Rumination about oneself was also significantly reduced at follow-up. Compassionate love and mindfulness were increased at follow-up, no effects were found on the Self-Compassion Scale and the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale. Given further confirming studies for this approach, it might improve treatment options for patients suffering from chronic depression.