Ending Self Stigma for PTSD (ESS-P)

August 25, 2017 updated by: VA Office of Research and Development

Reducing Internalized Stigma Among Veterans With PTSD: A Pilot Trial

Veterans with PTSD report that stigma and fear of stigma have a chilling effect on their participation in mental health treatment. Despite the widely-documented effects of stigma on the recovery of individuals with mental illnesses and research demonstrating harmful consequences of internalized stigma, including decreased hope, self-esteem, personal motivation, and persistence regarding illness management, no interventions are currently available to assist Veterans with PTSD in combating the impact of internalized stigma. The goal of this research is to develop and pilot-test an intervention to provide Veterans with PTSD the skills to cope effectively with stigma and to mitigate the internalization of stigmatizing beliefs and stereotypes. To accomplish this purpose, Ending Self Stigma (ESS), an intervention composed of evidence-based methods for combating internalized stigma for serious mental illness, will be modified and tested to address issues particular to PTSD.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Stigma and fear of stigma are widespread among Veterans with PTSD and both have pernicious effects on Veterans' well-being and participation in mental health treatment. Internalized stigma is a harmful consequence of societal stigma, and has been associated with decreased hope, self-esteem, personal motivation, morale, self-regard, and persistence regarding illness management among individuals with a range of mental illnesses. Internalized stigma also has negative impacts on the recovery and well-being of Veterans with PTSD specifically, but no evidence-based interventions are currently available to assist Veterans with PTSD in combatting the impact of internalized stigma. Therefore, the purpose of this proposal is to develop and pilot-test an intervention to provide Veterans with PTSD the skills to cope effectively with stigma and to mitigate the internalization of stigmatizing beliefs and stereotypes. To that end, the investigators will modify Ending Self Stigma (ESS), an intervention composed of evidence-based strategies for combating internalized stigma for mental illness developed by the investigators' team, to specifically serve the needs of Veterans with PTSD.

This proposed project is composed of two phases. In Phase I, the investigators will produce an intervention and accompanying manual for the PTSD version of ESS (ESS-P), based upon the strategies and structure of the existing ESS intervention. To this end, the investigators will interview Veterans with a PTSD diagnosis to learn more about their experience with societal and internalized stigma associated with PTSD, plus other considerations and issues in addressing internalized stigma with such Veterans. Information gleaned in these qualitative interviews will form the basis of the investigators' adaption of the ESS intervention to specifically address the needs of Veterans with PTSD. In Phase II, the investigators will pilot-test ESS-P with Veterans who have PTSD, to evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of the intervention. In addition, the investigators will preliminarily estimate the effects of ESS-P through comparison to a control group receiving only an informational brochure on internalized stigma associated with PTSD. These feasibility, implementation and pilot outcome data will be used to further refine the intervention, towards the goal of conducting a future larger scale study of ESS-P within the VA system.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

57

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Maryland
      • Baltimore, Maryland, United States, 21201
        • Baltimore VA Medical Center VA Maryland Health Care System, Baltimore, MD

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years to 70 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • a diagnosis of PTSD
  • age between 18 and 70
  • participation in mental health services at the VAMHCS
  • sufficient clinical stability to participate

Exclusion Criteria:

  • a diagnosis of serious mental illness

    • schizophrenia/schizoaffective disorder
    • bipolar disorder
    • major depression with psychotic features
  • participation in the Phase I qualitative study

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Ending Self-Stigma for PTSD
Ending Self Stigma for PTSD (ESS-P) is a 9-session small-group (6-8 persons) course designed to help individuals with PTSD develop skills to effectively cope with stigma and minimize the internalization of stigmatizing beliefs and stereotypes. Sessions combine in-class lecture, discussion of relevance to group members' personal experiences, review and practice of strategies and skills, and group sharing, support, and problem-solving. Each session is designed to focus on a specific strategy for addressing self-stigma.
Behavioral: Ending Self Stigma for PTSD
Ending Self Stigma for PTSD (ESS-P) is a 9-session small-group (6-8 persons) course designed to help individuals with PTSD develop skills to effectively cope with stigma and minimize the internalization of stigmatizing beliefs and stereotypes. Sessions combine in-class lecture, discussion of relevance to group members' personal experiences, review and practice of strategies and skills, and group sharing, support, and problem-solving. Each session is designed to focus on a specific strategy for addressing self-stigma.
Other Names:
  • ESS-P
Other: Enhanced Treatment as Usual
The comparison condition will consist of providing a pamphlet that discusses societal stigma and internalized stigma, and provides resources to help combat the effects of both. Participants will be given the informational pamphlet and study staff will discuss its content with the participant.
Other: Enhanced Treatment as Usual
The comparison condition will consist of providing a pamphlet that discusses societal stigma and internalized stigma, and provides resources to help combat the effects of both. Participants will be given the informational pamphlet and study staff will discuss its content with the participant.
Other Names:
  • ETAU

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Internalized Stigma of Mental Illness Inventory (Internalized Stigma)
Time Frame: Basline and Post Treatment (~3 1/2 months)
The Internalized Stigma of Mental Illness Inventory was used to measure of internalized or self-stigma. A total score is calculated by taking an average of the responses on the items (range=1 to 4). Higher total scores indicate greater internalized stigma.
Basline and Post Treatment (~3 1/2 months)

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
General Self-Efficacy
Time Frame: Baseline and Post Treatment (~3 1/2 months)
The General Self-Efficacy subscale of Sherer's Self-Efficacy Scale was used to measure participant's general beliefs or expectations about their abilities. A total score is calculated by summing the responses on the items (range= 17-85). Higher score indicate greater general self-efficacy.
Baseline and Post Treatment (~3 1/2 months)
Social Self-Efficacy
Time Frame: Baseline and Post Treatment (~3 1/2 months)
The Social Self-Efficacy subscale of Sherer's Self-Efficacy Scale was used to measure participant's beliefs or expectations about their abilities with regards to social interactions/relationships. A total score is calculated by summing the responses on the items (range= 5-30). Higher score indicate greater social self-efficacy.
Baseline and Post Treatment (~3 1/2 months)

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

VA Office of Research and Development

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

November 1, 2015

Primary Completion (Actual)

May 1, 2016

Study Completion (Actual)

September 1, 2016

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

April 6, 2016

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

April 6, 2016

First Posted (Estimate)

April 12, 2016

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

September 25, 2017

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

August 25, 2017

Last Verified

August 1, 2017

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • D1432-P
  • 1I21RX001432-01 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

UNDECIDED

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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