Mobile Cognitive Behavior Therapy Targeting Anxiety Disorders
Condition: Anxiety Disorders and Symptoms
MeSH terms: Anxiety Disorders
Study type: Interventional

Summary: 
      This study aims to examine different ways of motivating people to make use of Maya, a mobile
      cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) program for adolescents and young adults experiencing
      anxiety symptoms, and to assess whether social supports are as efficacious, or more
      efficacious, than other non-monetary incentives. Subjects will use the Maya app for at least
      20 minutes per day, 2 days per week, for 6 weeks. Assessments will include a weekly check in
      with a member of the research team, questionnaires, and an optional magnetic resonance
      imaging (MRI) recording.
    

Detailed description: 
      There is a growing need for easily accessed anxiety treatments designed for young adults.
      Mobile app-based interventions can be disseminated more broadly than traditional psychosocial
      interventions and may be particularly appealing to this age group, which uses mobile devices
      frequently. Mobile apps can also collect real-time data about patient symptom severity and
      provide tailored, in-the-moment coping strategies.

      This study aims to examine different ways of motivating people to make use of Maya, a mobile
      cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) app for adolescents and young adults experiencing anxiety
      symptoms, and to assess whether social supports are as efficacious, or more efficacious, than
      other non-monetary incentives. Young adults with anxiety will be randomized to one of three
      conditions: a social support condition, a gain-framed condition in which participants can
      earn "points" for completing their assigned sessions, and a loss-framed condition in which
      participants lose "points" for failing to complete their assigned sessions. Subjects will use
      the Maya app for at least 20 minutes per day, 2 days per week, for 6 weeks and will complete
      assessments at baseline, week 3, week 6 (end of treatment), and a follow-up assessment at
      week 12. Subjects may also choose to complete an optional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)
      recording at the baseline and end of treatment (week 6).
    

Intervention name(s): Maya mobile app; Social Support; Gain Framed; Loss Framed
Intervention type(s): Behavioral; Behavioral; Behavioral; Behavioral
Intervention description(s): The Maya app teaches cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) techniques including emotion monitoring, cognitive restructuring, mindfulness, and exposure to help individuals with anxiety.; Participants earn points and badges for completing sessions, homework, and skills on time and receive post session feedback via text message. Participants can identify a person they know to receive updates about their progress and support them throughout their time in the program. Participants will not be required to choose a person they know to receive updates about their use of the program; instead, they can choose to have a member of the study team serve as their social support if they are assigned to this condition.; Participants earn points and badges for completing sessions, homework, and skills on time and receive post session feedback via text message.; Participants lost points and badges for not completing sessions, homework, and skills on time and receive post session feedback via text message.
Allocation: Randomized
Intervention model: Parallel Assignment
Intervention model description: This is a randomized clinical trial designed to assess the feasibility of Maya, an app-based CBT intervention, and provide preliminary efficacy data for three different incentive strategies. Participants will be randomized to one of three incentive conditions: 1) a social support condition, 2) a gain-framed condition in which participants can earn "points" for completing assigned therapy sessions, and 3) a loss-framed condition in which participants begin with a specified number of points that they can lose for failing to complete assigned therapy sessions on time.
Masking: None (Open Label)
Primary purpose: Treatment
Keywords: anxiety; mental health; adolescents; young adults; CBT; mobile app; Cognitive Behavior Therapy