Imagery-enhanced cognitive behavioural group therapy for social anxiety disorder: A pilot study

Cognitive behavioural group therapy (CBGT) for social anxiety disorder (SAD) is efficacious and effective, however a substantial proportion of patients remain in the clinical range so treatment innovations are required. Research suggests that working within the imagery mode may be more emotionally p...

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Main Authors: McEvoy, Peter, Saulsman, L.
Format: Journal Article
Published: Elsevier Ltd 2014
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/30024
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author McEvoy, Peter
Saulsman, L.
author_facet McEvoy, Peter
Saulsman, L.
author_sort McEvoy, Peter
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Cognitive behavioural group therapy (CBGT) for social anxiety disorder (SAD) is efficacious and effective, however a substantial proportion of patients remain in the clinical range so treatment innovations are required. Research suggests that working within the imagery mode may be more emotionally potent than traditional verbal-linguistic strategies. This study piloted an imagery-enhanced CBGT (IE-CBGT) protocol for SAD. It was hypothesised that IE-CBGT would be acceptable to patients, demonstrate large effect sizes, and compare favourably to historical controls who completed CBGT without the imagery-enhancements. Patients (N = 19) were consecutive referrals to a community clinic specialising in anxiety and mood disorders. Primary outcomes were self-reported performance and social interaction anxiety. IE-CBGT was highly acceptable to patients with high attendance and completion rates. Effect sizes were large by mid-treatment and very large at post-treatment and follow-up. A high proportion of patients achieved reliable change. Outcomes compared favourably to published group and individual treatments for SAD but larger randomised controlled trials are now required.
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-300242019-02-19T04:28:06Z Imagery-enhanced cognitive behavioural group therapy for social anxiety disorder: A pilot study McEvoy, Peter Saulsman, L. Cognitive behavioural group therapy (CBGT) for social anxiety disorder (SAD) is efficacious and effective, however a substantial proportion of patients remain in the clinical range so treatment innovations are required. Research suggests that working within the imagery mode may be more emotionally potent than traditional verbal-linguistic strategies. This study piloted an imagery-enhanced CBGT (IE-CBGT) protocol for SAD. It was hypothesised that IE-CBGT would be acceptable to patients, demonstrate large effect sizes, and compare favourably to historical controls who completed CBGT without the imagery-enhancements. Patients (N = 19) were consecutive referrals to a community clinic specialising in anxiety and mood disorders. Primary outcomes were self-reported performance and social interaction anxiety. IE-CBGT was highly acceptable to patients with high attendance and completion rates. Effect sizes were large by mid-treatment and very large at post-treatment and follow-up. A high proportion of patients achieved reliable change. Outcomes compared favourably to published group and individual treatments for SAD but larger randomised controlled trials are now required. 2014 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/30024 10.1016/j.brat.2014.01.006 Elsevier Ltd fulltext
spellingShingle McEvoy, Peter
Saulsman, L.
Imagery-enhanced cognitive behavioural group therapy for social anxiety disorder: A pilot study
title Imagery-enhanced cognitive behavioural group therapy for social anxiety disorder: A pilot study
title_full Imagery-enhanced cognitive behavioural group therapy for social anxiety disorder: A pilot study
title_fullStr Imagery-enhanced cognitive behavioural group therapy for social anxiety disorder: A pilot study
title_full_unstemmed Imagery-enhanced cognitive behavioural group therapy for social anxiety disorder: A pilot study
title_short Imagery-enhanced cognitive behavioural group therapy for social anxiety disorder: A pilot study
title_sort imagery-enhanced cognitive behavioural group therapy for social anxiety disorder: a pilot study
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/30024