Building an Outcomes Assessment Infrastructure to Assess Anxiety Treatment
Social Anxiety DisorderSpecific Phobia4 moreThe collection of patient self-report and diagnostic data will allow us to examine the efficacy of the treatment delivered in the McLean Anxiety Mastery Program. Using data gathered through routine clinical care, the investigators seek to explore whether patients in treatment show improvements from admission to discharge, compared to patients on the waitlist, and whether these gains are maintained three months post-discharge. The following are included as examples of some of the study's hypotheses.
Risk and Resiliency Factors in the RCMP: A Prospective Investigation
Posttraumatic Stress DisorderMajor Depressive Disorder6 moreThe Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), like all public safety personnel (PSP), are frequently exposed to potentially psychologically traumatic events that contribute to posttraumatic stress injuries (PTSI). Addressing PTSI is impeded by the limited available research. The RCMP are working to build evidence-based solutions to PTSI and other mental health challenges facing their members, which by extension will help all PSP, as part of the Canadian Government Federal Framework on Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. A key element is the "Longitudinal Study of Operational Stress Injuries / Étude longitudinale sur les traumatismes liés au stress opérationnel", a study which has been renamed "Risk and Resiliency Factors in the RCMP: A Prospective Investigation", and is referred to as the "RCMP Study" for short. The RCMP Study has been detailed online (www.rcmpstudy.ca) and in a recently published peer-reviewed protocol paper, "The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Study: protocol for a prospective investigation of mental health risk and resilience factors" (https://doi.org/10.24095/hpcdp.42.8.02). The RCMP Study, part of the concerted efforts by the RCMP to reduce PTSI by improving access to evidence-based assessments, treatments, and training as well as participant recruitment and RCMP Study developments to date. The RCMP Study has been designed to (1) develop, deploy and assess the impact of a system for ongoing annual, monthly and daily evidence-based assessments; (2) evaluate associations between demographic variables and PTSI; (3) longitudinally assess individual differences associated with PTSI; (4) augment the RCMP Cadet Training Program with skills to proactively mitigate PTSI; and (5) assess the impact of the augmented training condition (ATC) versus the standard training condition (STC). Participants in the STC (n = 480) and ATC (n = 480) are assessed before and after training and annually for 5 years on their deployment date; they also complete brief monthly and daily surveys. The RCMP Study results are expected to benefit the mental health of all participants, RCMP and PSP by reducing PTSI among all who serve.
The Association Between Physical Sensations and Thinking Styles
Panic DisorderThe aim of the study is to examine panic-related associations and interpretations in the context of Panic Disorder and its treatment. While theoretical accounts of Panic Disorder suggest a central role of such associations and interpretations in the onset and maintenance of the disorder, research to date in fact leaves many questions about the nature of these dysfunctional cognitions and their potential role unanswered. Patients with Panic Disorder and a control group of patients with other anxiety disorders will complete measures of panic-relevant associations and interpretation bias. The patients with Panic Disorder will be randomized to receive either Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) or a waiting list condition (to be followed by CBT after completion of the study procedures). The anxious control group will also receive CBT. Panic-relevant associations and interpretations will be measured twice, i.e., pre and post CBT/waitlist. Furthermore, relevant symptom measures and physiological and biological markers will be assessed and responses to a hyperventilation challenge. The study aims to further advance our understanding of cognitions in the etiology and maintenance of Panic Disorder, and inform future treatment optimisation.
Level of Physical Activity and Fear Learning
Generalized Anxiety DisorderSocial Anxiety Disorder1 moreThe proposed experimental study will be the first to investigate whether exercise vs. sitting enhances consolidation of extinction learning in adults with high AS and anxiety disorders, and the mechanistic pathways of expectancy, affect, and key stress response markers.
Outcomes of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) Interventions Provided by Unlicensed Professionals...
Obsessive Compulsive DisorderBody Dysmorphic Disorder11 moreTo examine the effectiveness and clinical care outcomes of cognitive-behavioral therapy interventions at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH).
Floatation-REST (Reduced Environmental Stimulation Therapy) for Anxiety and Depression
Generalized Anxiety DisorderSocial Anxiety Disorder4 moreThis early-stage trial aims to examine the feasibility, tolerability, and safety of Floatation-REST (Reduced Environmental Stimulation Therapy) or an active comparison condition in 75 participants with clinical anxiety and depression.
Parent-based Treatment for Youth With Anxiety and Obsessive-compulsive Disorder
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder in ChildrenSocial Anxiety Disorder of Childhood6 moreAnxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorders are the most common mental health disorders in childhood and adolescence. A parenting intervention for youth with anxiety, called Supportive Parenting of Anxious Childhood Emotions ("SPACE"), has been recently developed to help target anxiety in children. In this intervention, therapists meet individually with parents to help them reduce anxiety behaviors in their children and support adaptive behaviors in their children. The purpose for the proposed study is to demonstrate the treatment efficacy of SPACE compared to a low-contact, therapist-supported bibliotherapy version of this intervention.
An Augmented Training Program for Preventing Post-Traumatic Stress Injuries Among Diverse Public...
Posttraumatic Stress DisorderMajor Depressive Disorder6 morePublic safety personnel (PSP; e.g., border services personnel, correctional workers, firefighters, paramedics, police, public safety communicators) are frequently exposed to potentially psychologically traumatic events. Such events contribute to substantial and growing challenges from posttraumatic stress injuries (PTSIs), including but not limited to posttraumatic stress disorder. The PSP PTSI Study has been designed to evaluate an evidence-informed, proactive system of mental health assessment and training among Royal Canadian Mounted Police (www.rcmpstudy.ca) for delivery among diverse PSP (i.e., firefighters, municipal police, paramedics, public safety communicators). The training is based on the Unified Protocol for the Transdiagnostic Treatment of Emotional Disorders, adapted for PSP, and named Emotional Resilience Skills Training (ERST). The subsequent PSP PTSI Study results are expected to benefit the mental health of all participants and, ultimately, all PSP.
Development of Online EMDR Therapy System and Its Comparative Testing With Face-to-Face EMDR Therapy...
Generalized Anxiety DisorderMajor Depressive Disorder4 moreThis study aims at developing an online system for the remote delivery of EMDR therapy in Pakistan. Moreover, this study will compare the efficacy of online EMDR therapy with face-to-face EMDR therapy.
Physical and Psychological Health Trajectories in the Context of Coronary Heart Disease
Panic DisorderGeneralized Anxiety Disorder2 moreThe primary aim of this study is to establish how frequently patients with coronary artery disease present or develop two anxiety disorders (panic disorder and generalized anxiety disorder) in the two years following a medical intervention for their heart. A second objective is to assess the impact of these anxiety disorders on the health of these patients.