title: Post-traumatic growth and optimism as outcomes of an internet-based intervention for complicated grief.
abstract: This explorative study examines the effects of an internet-based cognitive-behavioural therapy for complicated grief on post-traumatic growth and optimism. The study is part of a larger randomized controlled trial described in Wagner, Knaevelsrud, and Maercker (2006). The patients were randomly assigned to either a treatment group (n = 26) or a waiting list control condition (n = 25). The internet-based intervention consisted of exposure to bereavement cues, cognitive reappraisal exercises, and a module on integration and restoration. A short form of the Post-traumatic Growth Inventory (PTGI), the Life Orientation Test-Revised (LOT-R), and measures of complicated grief and psychopathological outcomes were administered. Results indicate that post-traumatic growth increased in the treatment group. No treatment effect was found for optimism. These findings contribute to the growing literature on personal growth in psychotherapy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychopathology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland. b.wagner@psychologie.unizh.ch
authors.forename: Birgit
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Wagner
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Knaevelsrud
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Maercker
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect; D003710:Demography; D005260:Female; D006117:Grief; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet / Q000295:instrumentation; D008297:Male; D011613:Psychotherapy / Q000295:instrumentation*; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy*; D013997:Time Factors