A randomized clinical trial comparing affect regulation and social problem-solving psychotherapies for mothers with victimization-related PTSD.
Addressing affect dysregulation may provide a complementary alternative or adjunctive approach to the empirically supported trauma memory processing models of cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). A CBT designed to enhance affect regulation without trauma memory processing--trauma affect regulation: guide for education and therapy (TARGET)--was compared to present centered therapy (PCT) and wait-list (WL) conditions in a randomized clinical trial with 146 primarily low-income and ethnoracial minority mothers with PTSD. TARGET achieved statistically and clinically significant improvement on PTSD and affect regulation measures compared to WL, with more consistent and sustained (over a 6-month follow-up period) evidence of improvement than PCT. Drop-out rates (~25%) were comparable in TARGET and PCT, similar to those previously reported for trauma memory processing CBTs. Symptom worsening was rare (2-8%) and transient. Affect regulation-based CBT without trauma memory processing warrants further research as a potentially efficacious therapy for victimization-related PTSD.
University of Connecticut School of Medicine, USA. jford@uchc.edu
Julian D
JD
Ford
Karen L
KL
Steinberg
Wanli
W
Zhang
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect; D001521:Behavior Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D019548:Crime Victims / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology*; D011340:Problem Solving; D012919:Social Behavior; D013313:Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D016896:Treatment Outcome