Clinical trial NCT05220618: Efficacy of an Autobiographical Memory Specificity and Savoring Training for the Reduction of Depressive Symptomatology
Official title: Feasibility and Preliminary Effects an Online Training to Increase the Specificity and Savoring of Positive Autobiographical Memories: a Randomized Controlled Pilot Study
Study type: INTERVENTIONAL
Overall status: COMPLETED
Phase: NA
Conditions: Training Group
Control Group
Lead sponsor: University of Valencia
Sponsor class: OTHER
First posted: 2022-02-02
Enrollment: 42
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 18
Maximum age (years): 55
Standard ages: ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: no
Allocation: RANDOMIZED
Intervention model: PARALLEL
Intervention model description: This is a pilot study with a mixed between-subject design (experimental condition that will receive the training, and control condition that will only receive the assessment) and within-subject (pre/post-training assessment and 2-week follow-up). Continuous assessments will also be used to longitudinally evaluate participants during the 14 days of training and the 14 days of follow-up.
Primary purpose: TREATMENT

Brief summary: The effect of autobiographical memory specificity and savoring training on memory specificity, positive affect regulation, well-being and depression symptomatology

Detailed description: The general objective of this study is to analyze the efficacy of an online-delivered Autobiographical Memory Specificity and SavoringTraining to increase the specificity of positive autobiographical memories, positive affect regulation strategies, well-being and to reduce depression symptomatology. It will be tested in two conditions (training group vs. control group) with low-to-moderate depressive symptomatology. It is hypothesized that the training group (over control group) will increase the specificity and positive affect regulation of autobiographical memories, and this will lead to a reduction of depressive symptomatology and increase of well-being.

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* Age between 18 and 55 (following Serrano et al., 2007 recommendations)
* Deficit in memory specificity: scores on Autobiographical Memory Test (AMT) \< (or equal) 70%
* Diagnosis of mild to moderate depression: scores on Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ9) between 5 to 14

Exclusion Criteria:

* being currently under psychological treatment
* present any medical illness or physical, psychological and/or cognitive incapacity that could impede the participation
* Not having the necessary technological means, i.e. access to a mobile phone with internet connection.

Primary outcomes:
measure: Autobiographical memory specificity. The Autobiographical Memory Test (AMT, Williams & Broadbent, 1986)
timeFrame: Screening for eligibility criteria; Change in AMT from pre- intervention (Day 0) to post-intervention (Day 15)
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Depressive symptomatology. The Patient Health Questionnaire 9 (PHQ-9; Kroenke, Spitzer & Williams, 2001, Spanish adaptation Diez-Quevedo et al., 2001)
timeFrame: Change in PHQ-9 from pre- intervention (Day 0) to post-intervention (Day 15); Change in PHQ-9 from post- intervention (Day 15) to follow-up (Day 30)
measure: Savoring. Ways of Savoring Checklist (WOSC, Bryant & Veroff, 2007; Jose, Lim, & Bryant, 2012)
timeFrame: Change in WOSC from pre- intervention (Day 0) to post-intervention (Day 15); Change in WOSC from post- intervention (Day 15) to follow-up (Day 30)
measure: Characteristics of positive memories recalled. (Continuous assessments)
timeFrame: Daily mood and characteristics of positive memories during intervention (From Day 1 to day 15).
measure: Positive and negative affect. The Positive and Negative Affect Scale (PANAS; Watson et al., 1988; Sandín et al., 1999)
timeFrame: Screening for eligibility criteria; Change in PANAS from pre- intervention (Day 0) to post-intervention (Day 15); Change in PANAS from post- intervention (Day 15) to follow-up (Day 30)
measure: Well-being. Mental Health Continuum Scale (MHC: Keyes, 2004; Echevarría et al., 2010)
timeFrame: Screening for eligibility criteria; Change in MHC from pre- intervention (Day 0) to post-intervention (Day 15); Change in MHC from post- intervention (Day 15) to follow-up (Day 30)
Other outcomes:
Locations:
city: Valencia
country: Spain
facility: University of Valencia
state: Conunidad Valencia
Study officials:
affiliation: University of Valencia
name: Rosa Baños, Full Professor
role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
References:
citation: Takano K, Mori M, Nishiguchi Y, Moriya J, Raes F. Psychometric properties of the written version of the autobiographical memory test in a japanese community sample. Psychiatry Res. 2017 Feb;248:56-63. doi: 10.1016/j.psychres.2016.12.019. Epub 2016 Dec 16.
citation: Ros L, Romero D, Ricarte JJ, Serrano JP, Nieto M, Latorre JM. Measurement of overgeneral autobiographical memory: Psychometric properties of the autobiographical memory test in young and older populations. PLoS One. 2018 Apr 19;13(4):e0196073. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0196073. eCollection 2018.
citation: Barry TJ, Sze WY, Raes F. A meta-analysis and systematic review of Memory Specificity Training (MeST) in the treatment of emotional disorders. Behav Res Ther. 2019 May;116:36-51. doi: 10.1016/j.brat.2019.02.001. Epub 2019 Feb 2.
citation: Hitchcock C, Werner-Seidler A, Blackwell SE, Dalgleish T. Autobiographical episodic memory-based training for the treatment of mood, anxiety and stress-related disorders: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Clin Psychol Rev. 2017 Mar;52:92-107. doi: 10.1016/j.cpr.2016.12.003. Epub 2016 Dec 21.
citation: Colombo, D., Suso-Ribera, C., Fernández-Álvarez, J., Cipresso, P., Garcia-Palacios, A., Riva, G., & Botella, C. (2020). Affect Recall Bias: Being Resilient by Distorting Reality. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 44(5), 906-918. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10608-020-10122-3