Targeting Cognitive Immunization in Depression

Philipps University

Status: Completed

Conditions: Major Depressive Disorder

Treatments: Behavioral: ATTENTION; Behavioral: INFORMATION; Behavioral: CONTROL; Behavioral: SALIENCE

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT03460574

2017-39k

Details and patient eligibility

About

Research has shown that people suffering from MDD tend to maintain dysfunctional expectations despite experiences that disconfirm expectations. Recently, it has been shown that this persistence of expectations is due to maladaptive information processing involving "cognitive immunization". This experimental study aims at testing three different strategies to inhibit cognitive immunization, in order to enhance expectation change.

Full description

It appears adaptive to change one's expectations when continuously gaining expectation-disconfirming experiences; however, research has shown that people suffering from MDD have difficulty in changing their expectations after experiences that disconfirm expectations. Recently, the investigators have shown that this persistence of expectations is due to maladaptive information processing involving "cognitive immunization", defined as a cognitive reappraisal of expectation-disconfirming experiences in such a way that the individual's expectations are maintained. In view of psychotherapeutic interventions aiming to modify patients' dysfunctional expectations, effective strategies to inhibit cognitive immunization strategies need to be identified. Therefore, the aim of this study was to compare different immunization-inhibiting strategies with regard to their effectivity in enhancing expectation change. For this purpose, the investigators use a standardized experimental paradigm, which was developed and validated in a previous study.

Enrollment: 135 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18+ years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• current diagnosis of Major Depressive Disorder
• at least 18 years old
• sufficient German language knowledge

Exclusion criteria

• none

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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135 participants in 4 patient groups

INFORMATION

Experimental group

Description:

Participants in this condition receive a manipulation suggesting that the performance test "TEMINT", they previously worked on, has been shown to be highly relevant for daily life and professional success. We anticipated that after receiving this fake information about the TEMINT, it would be difficult for participants to engage in cognitive immunization processes because the validity and utility of the expectation-disconfirming experience is explicitly highlighted.

Treatment:

Behavioral: INFORMATION

SALIENCE

Experimental group

Description:

Participants in this condition are asked to think about how well they performed on this really difficult performance test. We anticipated that this manipulation would enhance expectation change, as the salience of the expectation-disconfirming experience was explicitly increased.

Treatment:

Behavioral: SALIENCE

ATTENTION

Experimental group

Description:

Before working on the performance test, participants in this conditions receive the instruction to attentionally focus on their personal result in the performance test. Further, they are asked to specify what would be personally good result for them. We anticipated that after receiving this instruction, the expectation-disconfirming performance feedback should be salient for the participants, hence making it difficult for them to engage in cognitive immunization strategies.

Treatment:

Behavioral: ATTENTION

CONTROL

Experimental group

Description:

Participants in this condition receive no further information. Therefore, they are passing through the standard procedure of the previously developed experimental paradigm.

Treatment:

Behavioral: CONTROL