The effectiveness of brief cognitive analytic therapy for anxiety and depression: A quasi‐experimental case—control study

Abstract

Objectives. To investigate the effectiveness of an 8-session cognitive analytic therapy (CAT) protocol for patients with anxiety and depression in the context of relational problems, personality disorder traits, or histories of adverse childhood experiences and then to compare outcomes with cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT).Methods. The study was conducted in a single Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) service and used sessional outcome monitoring. Propensity score matching was used to derive equivalent CAT (N = 76) and CBT (N = 73) samples through matching intake characteristics. Longitudinal multilevel modelling (LMLM) compared patterns of symptomatic change over time between the two therapies.Results. LMLM found no significant differences between CAT and CBT in depression, anxiety, and functional impairment outcomes and showed similar symptom change trajectories. Small between-therapy post-treatment effects and medium-to-large withintherapy effects were found. CAT patients attended significantly more sessions, and the CAT dropout rate was significantly lower.Conclusions. Brief CAT appears acceptable and effective for patients with anxiety and depression in the context of complex relational problems when delivered within the high intensity tier of an IAPT service. The potential added value of CAT in IAPT services is discussed. Practitioner pointsPractitioners (under appropriate supervision) could use 8-session CAT when treating patients with anxiety and depression in the context of clinical complexity. The 8-session CAT model holds organizational promise in IAPT services. Brief CAT interventions should retain theoretical integrity.This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

The Effect of Computerized Cognitive Behavioral Therapy on People's Anxiety and Depression During the 6 Months of Wuhan's Lockdown of COVID-19 Epidemic: A Pilot Study

“…In summary, the sample included 7,719 patients and the final results consistently proved the effectiveness of CBT in reducing anxiety symptoms in adolescents (Wang et al, 2017 ), which is consistent with the results of a previous systematic review (Manassis et al, 2010 ). Besides, other studies have provided robust evidence for the effectiveness of CBT in the treatment of anxiety and depressive disorders in adolescents and young adults compared with passive controls (A-Tjak et al, 2021 ; Riise et al, 2021 ; Wakefield et al, 2021 ; Wergeland et al, 2021 ). These studies indicate that CBT is a great choice for alleviating the mental health problems caused by COVID-19.…”

Virtual Reality and Electrodermal Activity to Support Mild Cognitive Impairment: A Systematic Literature Review

“…Studies VR [6], [5], [7], [12], [13], [15], [17], [18], [20], [21], [22], [23], [26], [27], [30], [31], [32], [33], [34], [36], [35], [37], [38], [41], [42], [43], [47], [49], [50], [54], [57], [59], [60], [61] EDA [2], [3], [8], [9], [11], [12], [16], [20], [25], [26], [27], [28], [29], [30], [31], [32], [33], [34...…”

“…These sensors provide time-altering indicators for the human brain's cognitive state through physical and psychological accuracy [16], [19]. The EDA has bio-signals that include skin conductance and changes in acceleration, pressure, sound, flow, and temperature [8], [50], [71]. Accurate monitoring of EDA provides an individual's emotional, cognitive, and mental state framework.…”

“…Sources published in the past five years are an appropriate benchmark for the latest innovations, hypotheses, and approaches due to the fast pace of technological changes within the mixed reality domain [13], [19], [27], [29], [30]. When Wakefield et al [8] considered the effectiveness of brief cognitive analytic therapy for anxiety and depression, a quasi-experimental case-control study, their study is similar to the theme demonstrated in the review. However, there are significant differences between cognitive analytic therapy and the two study groups.…”

“…Preceding systematic reviews from 2018-2020 regarding anxiety, stress, and depression uncovered promising effects on improving cognitive function between individuals with MCI and virtual reality therapy through COVID-19 [4]. In addition, ten recent review articles covering VR and EDA for supporting individuals with anxiety, stress and depression suffering from MCI indicate that developing technologies could improve symptoms using immersive reality, web-based, the Internet of Things (IoT), and artificial intelligence for assessment and therapy of individuals [5], [6], [7], [8], [9], [10], [11], [12], [13], [14].…”