Inter-Brain Synchrony in Psychotherapy for Test Anxiety

NCT05336734 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: 185/21
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 8
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

The study aims to examine inter-brain synchrony between patients and therapists over the course of psychotherapy. Eight patients underwent a 6-session course of psychotherapy for test anxiety including Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and imagery work, following an existing protocol (see Prinz et al., 2019), as well as a pre- and post- treatment interview (with different interviewers). The researchers used functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) imaging to record brain activity during both interviews and sessions 1, 3, and 5, and collected saliva samples to measure hormone levels during the same sessions. Participants completed questionnaires before and after the study, and before and after each session. The researchers hypothesized that synchrony will gradually increase over the psychotherapy sessions, that synchrony in the pre-treatment interview will be lower than in the post-treatment interview, and that synchrony would be correlated with increases in Oxytocin.

Conditions

Test Anxiety

Keywords

Synchrony; fNIRS; imaging; psychotherapy

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Change from baseline State Test Anxiety

  A six-item self-report questionnaire designed to measure test anxiety, evaluation apprehension and low efficacy (Lawrence \& Williams, 2013). Change was defined as the difference between State Test Anxiety at week 7 and at week 2, and a successful outcome would be State Test Anxiety being lower at week 7 than at week 2. The scale is comprised of 6 items scored between 0 and 6, with the scale value being the mean of the items and as such also ranging between 0 and 6, with higher values representing more anxiety (i.e., more symptoms).

  Weeks 2,7

Secondary Outcomes (1)

• Change from baseline Test Anxiety Inventory

  Weeks 1,8

Other Outcomes (1)

• Change from baseline Outcome Rating Scale

  Weeks 2,7

Study Arms (1)

Main group

EXPERIMENTAL

The group underwent a psychotherapy course combining CBT and imagery work. (For full protocol see Prinz et al., 2019)

Behavioral: Psychotherapy

Interventions

Psychotherapy BEHAVIORAL

see group description

Main group

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Test Anxiety Inventory at least 50.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• University of Haifa: lead

Study Sites (1)

University of Haifa

Haifa, 3498838, Israel

Location

Related Publications (3)

• Prinz JN, Bar-Kalifa E, Rafaeli E, Sened H, Lutz W. Imagery-based treatment for test anxiety: A multiple-baseline open trial. J Affect Disord. 2019 Feb 1;244:187-195. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2018.10.091. Epub 2018 Oct 6.

  PMID: 30343122 BACKGROUND

• Spielberger, C.D. Test anxiety inventory: Preliminary professional manual. Palo Alto,CA: Consulting Psychologist Press. 1980.

  BACKGROUND

• Lawrence, J. S., & Williams, A. Anxiety explains why people with domain-contingent self-worth underperform on ability-diagnostic tests. Journal of Research in Personality. 2013; 47(3): 227-232

  BACKGROUND

MeSH Terms

Interventions

Psychotherapy

Intervention Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Behavioral Disciplines and Activities

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NA
• Masking: NONE
• Masking Details: There was no assignment to different groups and as a result, no masking.
• Purpose: BASIC SCIENCE
• Intervention Model: SINGLE GROUP
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Model Details: The study was designed to examine changes in inter-brain synchrony over the course of standard psychotherapy, and not treatment effectiveness. As such, a single group design was deemed adequate.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: April 6, 2022
• First Posted: April 20, 2022
• Study Start: May 23, 2021
• Primary Completion: January 16, 2022
• Study Completion: January 16, 2022
• Last Updated: April 20, 2022

Record last verified: 2022-04

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will share
• Shared Documents: STUDY PROTOCOL, SAP, ANALYTIC CODE
• Time Frame: After publication.
• Access Criteria: Open Access

Locations

IL (1)