Attachment, Patient Self-disclosure and Psychotherapy Outcome

Attachment as a Moderator of the Relationship Between Patient Self-disclosure and Psychotherapy Outcome: Separating Within- From Between-patient Effects

This study investigates whether within- and between-patient effects of attachment moderate the association between self-disclosure and psychotherapy outcome.

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Psychotherapy; Treatment Outcome; Attachment; Self Disclosure
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: Psychotherapy

Detailed Description

Participants are recruited at the University Clinic Heidelberg at the beginning of their (usually) 8-week inpatient treatment. After informed consent, patients routinely fill out weekly questionnaires on attachment, self-disclosure, and symptom severity.

This study is the first to disentangle stable, trait-like (between-person) effects of both attachment and self-disclosure from within-person changes over the course of treatment. The study investigates whether (changes in) attachment moderate the association between (changes in) self-disclosure and psychotherapy outcome.

• Study Type: Observational
• Enrollment (Actual): 1500

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

The study population consists of patients undergoing inpatient treatment at the university hospital Heidelberg.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• patients of at least 18 years of age
• treated at the inpatient unit of a hospital for psychosomatic medicine
• provided measurements of symptoms, attachment style, and self-disclosure for at least one measurement occasion

Exclusion Criteria:

• bipolar, acute psychotic or substance abuse disorders

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Observational Models: Cohort
• Time Perspectives: Prospective

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Symptom Checklist Short Form (SCL-K11)	Symptom measure	for each participant: weekly assessment for 8 weeks of inpatient psychotherapy. Data will be reported for 7 years of continous study enrollment (2014 - 2021)

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Relationship Questionnaire 2 (RQ-2)	Attachment measure	for each participant: weekly assessment for 8 weeks of inpatient psychotherapy. Data will be reported for 7 years of continous study enrollment (2014 - 2021)
Inpatient and day clinic experiences questionnaire (IDES)	measure of self-disclosure and other treatment factors	for each participant: weekly assessment for 8 weeks of inpatient psychotherapy. Data will be reported for 7 years of continous study enrollment (2014 - 2021)

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University Hospital Heidelberg
• Investigators: Study Chair: Ulrike Dinger, Prof, University Hospital Heidelberg

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): January 1, 2015
• Primary Completion (Actual): September 1, 2021
• Study Completion (Actual): September 1, 2021

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: November 15, 2021
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: November 25, 2021
• First Posted (Actual): December 9, 2021

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): December 9, 2021
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: November 25, 2021
• Last Verified: November 1, 2021

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Other Study ID Numbers: Attach-Sel-2021

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: No

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No