Clinical trial NCT02572921: Comparison of Positive Psychotherapy and Cognitive-Behavioral Psychotherapy for Depression
Official title: Evaluation of the Positive Psychotherapy to Reduce Symptoms and to Promote Happiness With Depressive Patients Compared to Cognitive-Behavioral Psychotherapy
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: UNKNOWN
Phase: NA
Conditions: Depression
Keywords: Positive Psychotherapy
Depression
Happiness
Lead sponsor: University of Salzburg
Sponsor class: OTHER
Collaborators: name: The Wagner-Jauregg Provincial Neuropsychiatric Clinic
First posted: 2015-10-09
Enrollment: 60
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 18
Maximum age (years): 60
Standard ages: ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: no
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: FACTORIAL
Primary purpose: TREATMENT

Brief summary: This study evaluates the effects of the Positive Psychotherapy on depressive symptoms and on happiness compared with regular cognitive behavioral therapy.

Detailed description: Positive Psychotherapy (PPT) focuses on increasing well-being and positive emotions rather than ameliorating deficits in contrast to standard psychotherapy.

A lack of positive emotions, engagement and felt meaning are typically viewed as consequences or mere correlates of depression, while the PPT suggests that these may be causal for depression. Therefore building positive emotion, engagement and meaning will alleviate depression.

Thus PPT may offer a new way to treat and prevent depression.

The aim of this study is to compare the effects of the Positive Psychotherapy on depressive symptoms, life satisfaction and happiness in comparison to standard cognitive behavior psychotherapy (regular cognitive behavioral therapy).

60 mildly to moderately depressed patients are randomly assigned to the Positive Psychotherapy group or the regular cognitive behavioral therapy group.

Both treatments (primary intervention group and control group) are conducted in an outpatient group therapy setting with 14 sessions and a duration of 2-hours-per-week in small groups of 6 or 7 patients.

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* Clinical diagnosis of Depression (Major depressive disorder, recurrent: mild to moderate; Major depressive disorder, single episode: mild to moderate; Dysthymic disorder)
* Patients should be between age 18 and 60

Exclusion Criteria:

* Any current treatment for depression
* Substance related or alcohol related disorder (within the last 12 months)
* Panic disorder
* Manic or hypomanic disorder
* Psychotic disorder \* refusal to participate in a 14 weeks psychotherapy treatment

Primary outcomes:
measure: Depressive symptoms (measured by a self-report questionnaire)
timeFrame: fourteen weeks
measure: Depressive symptoms (measured by an assessment by others)
timeFrame: fourteen weeks
measure: Happiness (measured by a self-report-questionnaire)
timeFrame: fourteen weeks
measure: Happiness (measured by a self-report questionnaire)
timeFrame: fourteen weeks
measure: Life satisfaction (measured by a self-report questionnaire)
timeFrame: fourteen weeks
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Clinical Symptoms
timeFrame: fourteen weeks
measure: Life events
timeFrame: six months
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Linz
country: Austria
facility: Wagner-Jauregg- Hospital
state: Upper Austria
city: Salzburg
country: Austria
facility: Beratungsstelle für Klinische Psychologie, Psychotherapie und Gesundheitspsychologie
Study officials:
affiliation: Paris Lodron University of Salzburg
name: Anton-Rupert Laireiter, Univ.-Prof.Dr.
role: STUDY_CHAIR
References: