What Are You Looking for? Psychometric and Experimental Analyses of Reassurance Seeking in Obsessive-compulsive Disorder

What Are You Looking for? Psychometric and Experimental Analyses of Reassurance Seeking in Obsessive-compulsive Disorder

What Are You Looking for? Psychometric and Experimental Analyses of Reassurance Seeking in Obsessive-compulsive Disorder

This study evaluates the efficacy and acceptability of two cognitive-behavioural interventions for reassurance seeking behaviour in obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), a family accommodation reduction protocol vs. a novel support-seeking protocol. Half of participants will be randomly assigned to participate in the support-seeking intervention, whereas the other half will participate in the family accommodation reduction intervention.

An existing family accommodation reduction intervention to reduce reassurance seeking behaviour in OCD (which represents treatment as usual, or TAU) is being compared to a novel support-seeking intervention to determine which is more efficacious and acceptable to participants. The TAU protocol asks participants to make an agreement with their significant others to withhold reassurance when it is sought. It is believed that this behaviourally-based intervention encourages extinction of reassurance seeking over time by eliminating reinforcement of the behaviour by significant others. The support-seeking intervention asks participants to move towards adaptively seeking support from a significant other to manage anxiety or distress rather than seeking reassurance. Significant others are taught to provide support rather than reassurance. It is believed that support-seeking may reduce reassurance seeking behaviour because it helps participants manage the anxiety or distress that underlies the requests for reassurance without interfering with disconfirmatory learning.

Cognitive-behavioural therapy intervention that guides participants to seek support rather than reassurance; participants' significant others are asked to provide support rather than reassurance.

Cognitive-behavioural therapy intervention that guides participants' significant others to withhold reassurance when it is requested; participants are asked to refrain from seeking reassurance.

Empirically-supported psychological intervention for various mental health concerns including obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Includes components to foster cognitive (i.e., thinking) and behavioural changes.

Number of times participants in the support-seeking condition self-report seeking reassurance per day

One-week follow-up: Treatment Acceptability and Adherence Scale (TAAS; Milosevic, Levy, Alcolado, & Radomsky, 2015)

Validated questionnaire assessing how acceptable participants find an intervention as well as ease of adherence.

Three-week follow-up: Treatment Acceptability and Adherence Scale (TAAS; Milosevic, Levy, Alcolado, & Radomsky, 2015)

Validated questionnaire assessing how acceptable participants find an intervention as well as ease of adherence.

Pre-post assessment of change in the number of times per day that participants self-report reassurance seeking behaviour from the baseline monitoring week to the follow-up assessments.

Inclusion Criteria: Diagnosis of OCD Engaging in reassurance seeking more than once a day about the same thing Willingness to allow the experimenter to contact a significant other from whom the participant seeks reassurance regularly Ability to read, write, and communicate in English Exclusion Criteria: Current suicidal ideation/intent Current substance abuse Psychosis Diagnosis of bipolar disorder (I or II) If participants are on medication they must be on a stable dose (i.e., have maintained a consistent dose for at least three months) and agree not to change their medication regimen for the duration of the study