认知行为疗法治疗儿童青少年强迫症的应用研究

强迫症已经被认为是儿童青少年常见的心理障碍之一.强迫症的认知行为模型在成人研究中得到了大量的实证支持,但这个模型在儿童青少年群体中研究相时较少.认知行为疗法被广泛认为是治疗儿童青少年强迫症的有效心理治疗方案,但对于认知行为治疗儿童青少年强迫症的实证研究还有待进一步深入.     

儿童青少年强迫症的认知行为理论研究探讨

强迫症已经被认为是儿童青少年常见的心理障碍之一,强迫症的认知行为模型在成人研究中得到了大量的实证支持,但这个模型在儿童青少年群体中研究相对较少.从儿童青少年强迫症的界定及其流行病学调查出发,回顾了强迫症认知行为理论的解释及儿童青少年强迫症认知行为理论实证研究,最后对该理论模型提出了一些建议.     

强迫症认知行为团体治疗的疗效及其相关因素的质性探索

目的:研究认知行为团体治疗(Group Cognitive Behavioral Therapy,GCBT)对强迫症患者的疗效,并分析与疗效相关的因素,为强迫症的认知行为团体治疗供理论与实践的参考。方法:运用质的研究方法,对10例中重度门诊强迫症患者开展连续12次的认知行为团体治疗,治疗结束后进行个案深度访谈,并采用主...     

认知行为疗法在儿童焦虑症治疗中的应用

焦虑症是一种最常见的儿童疾病.病理焦虑通常被定义为与年龄不适当的焦虑,导致功能障碍和严重痛苦.目前大量调查儿童焦虑的CBT治疗效果的研究显示,针对各种患有不同焦虑障碍的儿童CBT是有效的.典型的认知行为治疗包括四个主要方面:心理教育,应对技能,暴露和应急管理.Coping Cat治疗方案是在随机对照试验中针对儿童焦虑最常被实施的CBT治疗方案.目前认知行为疗法在治疗儿童焦虑症中也存在着局限,今后需要进行更深入的研究.     

强迫症病理的认知–行为研究述评

认知–行为领域对强迫症(OCD)的病理进行了深入的探索。强迫症的认知–行为理论认为功能失调性信念、应对策略及中和行为对强迫症的发生和维持有重要作用; 强迫症的安全动机模型把强迫行为归因于安全动机系统不能产生停止安全防卫行为的信号, 在此基础上有研究表明, 在做停止强迫行为的决策时, 强迫症患者依赖于主观停止标准, 导致决策困难, 延长了强迫行为持续的时间。通过整理近年来此领域的研究, 认为趋–避冲突存在于一些强迫症患者中, 且可能是导致强迫症的又一重要因素。     

认知行为疗法在儿童社会退缩行为干预中的新进展

社会退缩行为指儿童在社会情境中抑制自己参与同伴互动并表现出独处的行为。社会退缩阻碍儿童形成良好的社交能力,影响其人格和认知的健康发展,因而对儿童社会退缩行为进行及时干预显得十分重要。研究对认知行为疗法在儿童社会退缩行为干预中的进展进行了整合,包括虚拟现实暴露疗法、学校情境下的认知行为治疗及网络认知行为治疗。未来研究应设计针对社会退缩行为不同亚类型的干预方案,以及在干预中重视情绪调节的训练和教师的介入。     

儿童青少年认知能力发展与脑发育

自发展认知神经科学兴起以来, 研究者就开始借助MRI等脑成像技术探讨儿童青少年认知能力发展与大脑结构发育和功能特点等之间的关系, 这为揭示行为发展与生理成熟之间的关系、儿童认知发展的神经活动规律、正常和障碍群体的独特大脑神经结构及活动特点等提供了重要启示。通过对有关儿童青少年智力、工作记忆、反应抑制等认知能力发展与大脑结构发育、大脑功能发育之间关系, 以及认知能力训练与大脑可塑性等研究的介绍, 指出发展认知神经科学的未来研究应重视采用纵向设计, 关注自然成熟和经验对正常或障碍儿童青少年认知发展与脑发育关系的交互影响, 同时从练习和训练的角度对大脑可塑性的特点进行探讨。     

一例认知行为疗法治疗进食问题的案例报告

本案记述了一名本科二年级女生进食问题的咨询过程。咨询师通过资料搜集和鉴别诊断,确定为严重心理问题,制定了以认知行为疗法为主,并配合放松、行为塑造法的咨询方案,改变了求助者的不合理信念,减轻了其焦虑情绪,改变了求助者因身材问题产生的自卑情绪,建立了自信心,改善了人际关系。该咨询达到了预期的效果。     

自闭症儿童行为评定与社会认知发展的研究

本研究用自闭症儿童发展评定量表,自闭症儿童基本社会认知问卷以及“ＴｏＭ”实验,对４９名自闭症儿童及３０名弱智儿童进行了行为评定与社会认知的研究。研究结果为目前国内自闭症的诊断和治疗提供了新的有效工具及进一步明确化的理论依据,并为其教育训练提供了标准的新的启示。     

激励儿童认知行为的社会因素

儿童从出生之日起,就开始与人之间进行交流,置身于一个大环境中;家庭、学校、社会三都直接作用于儿童,潜移默化地影响儿童认知行为的产生和发展,从而对儿童的个性形成不可低估的影响。研究这方面的问题为培养优秀的下一代略尽微薄之力。     

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder in Children and Adolescents: A Review and Analysis

Only recently has the mental health community recognized the applicability of diagnostic criteria for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in children and adolescents, including a consideration of specific age-related features. This paper provides a current review of the literature on PTSD pertaining to children and adolescents. Following a discussion of issues on diagnostic criteria and assessment of this affective disorder in this population, there is an overview of the existing literature on prevalence, comorbidity, risk factors, parental and family factors, and issues of gender and age of onset. The remainder of the paper focuses on the range of traumatic stressors in children and adolescents that can result in PTSD, including natural or human disasters, war and violence, chronic or life-threatening medical conditions, community violence and the witnessing of traumatic events, and physical and/or sexual abuse and other forms of interpersonal violence. Throughout the paper, there is an emphasis on the importance of considering developmental factors. Finally, implications of the existing literature for future areas of research are addressed.     

An Inhibitory Learning Approach to Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Children and Adolescents

Although exposure-based cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) is efficacious for childhood anxiety and obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD), many youth do not adequately respond to treatment. Extinction learning is an important process in exposure-based CBT. However, youth with anxiety disorders and OCD exhibit impairments in extinction processes that are best characterized by deficits in inhibitory learning. Therefore, the utilization of strategies to optimize inhibitory learning during exposures may compensate for these deficits, thereby maximizing extinction processes and producing more robust treatment outcomes for exposure-based CBT. This paper reviews several strategies to optimize inhibitory learning in youth with anxiety disorders and OCD, and presents practical examples for each strategy. This paper also highlights the difference between inhibitory learning-based exposures and prior conceptual approaches to exposure therapy in clinical practice. It concludes with a discussion of future directions for clinical research on inhibitory learning and exposure-based CBT in youth.     

Emotional and Behavioural Problems Among Refugee Children and Adolescents Living in South Australia

While there is a growing body of literature on the mental health status of adult refugees, children have been relatively neglected in research, particularly in Australia. This study investigated the prevalence of emotional and behavioural problems and patterns of service utilisation among 530 refugee children and adolescents aged 4–17 years living in South Australia. Parents and teachers of children aged 4–17 years and adolescents aged 13–17 years completed the appropriate versions of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire. Of the 11.0% of children and adolescents found to have borderline or abnormal emotional and behavioural problems, only 13.0% accessed professional help. The study has practical implications for policy and practice.     

Sleep-Related Problems in Pediatric Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder and Intensive Exposure Therapy

Limited research has examined sleep-related problems (SRPs) among children and adolescents with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). The present study addresses this gap by investigating preliminary associations between SRPs, demographic factors (gender and age), family variables (family accommodation and parental stress), and clinical factors (medication status, internalizing and externalizing symptoms, OCD severity, OCD-related impairment), and treatment outcomes in a sample of 103 youth (aged 7 to 17 years; 53% female) with a primary diagnosis of OCD. Clinician, parent, and child measures were used to assess demographic, family, and clinical predictors. SRPs were assessed using an 8-item measure comprising items of the Child Behaviour Checklist, Child Depression Inventory, and Multidimensional Anxiety Scale for Children as used in previous studies. Results showed that SRPs were highly prevalent among this sample and that more SRPs were associated with younger age, internalizing problems, and functional impairment. However, SRPs were not an independent predictor of OCD severity, impairment, or treatment response. Preliminary findings suggest that SRPs among youth with OCD may be more strongly associated with broader internalizing symptoms than with OCD itself. Future longitudinal research is warranted to further explore the complexity of SRPs when co-occurring with pediatric OCD.     

Disentangling the Impact of Resistance and Ambivalence on Therapy Outcomes in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Generalized Anxiety Disorder

Resistance and ambivalence about change are increasingly recognized as important determinants of treatment outcomes. Moreover, resistance and ambivalence are thought to be theoretically related in that clients who are more ambivalent about change are more likely to demonstrate resistance to the process and tasks of treatment. In the context of cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) for generalized anxiety disorder, the present study simultaneously examined early resistance and ambivalence using two observer-based coding systems in order to determine their inter-relationship and, importantly, to investigate their relative contributions to outcome. Resistance was also coded during mid-treatment in order to investigate possible mediation pathways. Early ambivalence (clients’ arguments against change or counter-change talk) was found to be no longer related to outcomes when early resistance was taken into account, suggesting that disharmony in the therapeutic relationship is more important to outcomes than ambivalence per se. Moreover, mid-treatment resistance partially mediated the relationship between early resistance and post-treatment worry severity. That is, higher early opposition to therapist direction is related to poorer outcomes, in part because it is associated with greater resistance during the working phase of CBT. The findings underscore the critical need for therapists to be sensitive to identifying resistance early and throughout treatment.     

Early Change Trajectories in Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Binge-Eating Disorder

Rapid response is considered the most well-established outcome predictor across treatments of binge-eating disorder (BED), including cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). This study sought to identify latent trajectories of early change in CBT and compare them to common rapid response classifications. In a multicenter randomized trial, 86 adults with BED (DSM-IV) or subsyndromal BED provided weekly self-reports of binge eating over the first 4 weeks of CBT, which were analyzed to predict binge eating, depression, and body mass index at posttreatment, 6-, and 18-month follow-up. Using latent growth mixture modeling, three patterns of early change—including moderate and low decreasing—as well as low stable binge eating were identified, which significantly predicted binge-eating remission at 6-month follow-up. Other classifications of rapid response based on Receiver Operating Characteristics curve analyses or on the literature (≥ 10% reduction in binge eating at week 1, ≥ 70% reduction in binge eating at week 4) only predicted posttreatment remission or overall depression, respectively. Latent change trajectories, but not other rapid response classifications, predicted binge-eating frequency over time. A fine-grained analysis of change over the first 4 weeks of CBT for BED revealed different trajectories of early change in binge eating that led to an improved prediction of binge-eating outcome, compared to that of common rapid response classifications. Thorough monitoring of early change trajectories during treatment may have clinical utility.     

Emotion Regulation Strategies in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Panic Disorder

Emotion regulation (ER) has been incorporated into many models of psychopathology, but it has not been examined directly in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for panic disorder with agoraphobia (PD/A). In this study, a preliminary model of ER in CBT for PD/A is proposed based on existing theories, and several propositions of the model are tested. We hypothesized that increases in cognitive reappraisal would precede decreases in biased cognitions, decreases in expressive suppression would follow decreases in biased cognitions, and a reduction in symptom severity would follow decreases in expressive suppression. Twenty-nine patients who received CBT for PD/A completed weekly self-report measures of symptom severity, anxiety sensitivity, reappraisal and expressive suppression. In addition, patients were compared to a matched normal sample. Cross-lagged analyses partially supported the hypotheses. Reappraisal did not change until late stages of therapy and was generally not associated with treatment outcome. Suppression decreased significantly and exhibited a reciprocal relationship with biased cognitions. Symptom reduction followed decreases in suppression as hypothesized. However, patients did not differ in ER from matched controls at either pre- or posttreatment. Results suggest the important distinction between reappraisal and appraisal, and stress the role of session-by-session decreases in suppression as a predictor of symptom reduction.     

Obsessive compulsive personality disorder as a predictor of exposure and ritual prevention outcome for obsessive compulsive disorder

Despite elevated rates of obsessive compulsive personality disorder (OCPD) in patients with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD), no study has specifically examined comorbid OCPD as a predictor of exposure and ritual prevention (EX/RP) outcome. Participants were adult outpatients (n = 49) with primary OCD and a Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale (YBOCS) total score ≥ 16 despite a therapeutic serotonin reuptake inhibitor dose for at least 12 weeks prior to entry. Participants received 17 sessions of EX/RP over 8 weeks. OCD severity was assessed with the YBOCS pre- and post-treatment by independent evaluators. At baseline, 34.7% of the OCD sample met criteria for comorbid DSM-IV OCPD, assessed by structured interview. OCPD was tested as a predictor of outcome both as a diagnostic category and as a dimensional score (severity) based on the total number of OCPD symptoms coded as present and clinically significant at baseline. Both OCPD diagnosis and greater OCPD severity predicted worse EX/RP outcome, controlling for baseline OCD severity, Axis I and II comorbidity, prior treatment, quality of life, and gender. When the individual OCPD criteria were tested separately, only perfectionism predicted worse treatment outcome, over and above the previously mentioned covariates. These findings highlight the importance of assessing OCPD and suggest a need to directly address OCPD-related traits, especially perfectionism, in the context of EX/RP to minimize their interference in outcome.