Loneliness Group Intervention

Loneliness Group Intervention for Geriatric Psychiatry Inpatients

The goal of this pilot study is to determine the feasibility and acceptability of a group loneliness intervention in geriatric psychiatry inpatients. This type of group loneliness intervention is based on functional analytic psychotherapy and is called Awareness, Courage, and Love Groups.

Study Overview

• Status: Active, not recruiting
• Conditions: Loneliness
• Intervention / Treatment: Behavioral: Awareness, Courage, and Love Groups; Other: Mutual Help Meetings

Detailed Description

The objective of our clinical trial is to adapt, implement, and evaluate a type of loneliness group intervention called Awareness, Courage, and Love Groups for older adults in a psychiatric unit. The following research questions will be answered: (a) Are ACL groups with geriatric psychiatry inpatients feasible and acceptable? (b) Do such ACL groups demonstrate preliminary efficacy?

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Estimated): 50
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• Canada
  • Ontario
    • London, Ontario, Canada, N6C 0A7
      • Parkwood Institute Mental Health

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 60 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Admission to geriatric psychiatry inpatient unit

Exclusion Criteria:

• Individuals who are disoriented to person, delirious, unable to tolerate or participate meaningfully in the group, or otherwise unable to provide consent to research and psychotherapy

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: Treatment
• Allocation: Randomized
• Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
• Masking: None (Open Label)

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Treatment; Treatment group will receive Awareness, Courage, and Love Groups for loneliness.	Behavioral: Awareness, Courage, and Love Groups; Groups based on the Awareness, Courage, and Love framework from functional analytic psychotherapy
Active Comparator: Control; Control group will receive treatment as usual in the form of Mutual Help Meetings.	Other: Mutual Help Meetings; Groups based on treatment as usual where patients gather to discuss how they can help others on the ward, and make requests for how others can help them.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Inclusion of Other in the Self Scale (IOS)	Brief single-item pictorial measure of social closeness. The minimum value is 1, the maximum value is 7, and higher scores indicate a better outcome.	Up to 2 months
UCLA Loneliness Scale (ULS-6)	Brief measure of loneliness. The minimum value is 6, the maximum value is 24, and higher scores indicate a worse outcome.	Up to 2 months
Relational Health Indices (RHI)	Brief measure of group relational health. The minimum value is 8, the maximum value is 40, and higher scores indicate a better outcome.	Up to 2 months
Quantitative Program Satisfaction	Brief measure of program satisfaction. The minimum value is 0, the maximum value is 16, and higher scores indicate a better outcome.	Up to 2 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Cantril Self-Anchoring Striving Scale	1 item pictorial scale of subjective wellbeing from 0 (minimum) to 10 (maximum). A higher score indicates a better outcome.	Up to 2 months
Sacred Moment Qualities (SMQ)	Brief measure of perceived sacred qualities, adapted from Pargament et al. (2014). The minimum value is 11, the maximum value is 55, and higher scores indicate a better outcome.	Up to 2 months

Other Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Satisfaction Questionnaire	Brief open-ended questions about program satisfaction. Responses are qualitative.	Up to 2 months

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: London Health Sciences Centre Research Institute OR Lawson Research Institute of St. Joseph's
• Collaborators: Western University, Canada
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Elisabeth VanBussel, MD, St. Joseph's Health Care London

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): February 23, 2024
• Primary Completion (Estimated): August 25, 2027
• Study Completion (Estimated): September 30, 2027

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: November 9, 2022
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: November 9, 2022
• First Posted (Actual): November 17, 2022

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Estimated): September 24, 2025
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: September 22, 2025
• Last Verified: September 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: geriatric; loneliness; functional analytic psychotherapy
• Other Study ID Numbers: 12528

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