Depression, Experiential Diversity, and Behavioral Novelty

August 8, 2024 updated by: Christopher G. Beevers, University of Texas at Austin

Depression, Experiential Diversity, and Behavioral Novelty: A Mobile Sensing Experimental Paradigm

The purpose of the study is to test whether changes in behavioral patterns are related to changes in depression. Depression is a psychological condition that involves persistent sad mood and/or an inability to enjoy pleasurable activities. Very stable behavioral patterns may be related to symptoms of depression. The aim of this study is to learn more about the relationship between symptoms of depression and behavioral patterns that are collected via global positioning system location data from a smart phone.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

77

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
    • Texas
      • Austin, Texas, United States, 78712
        • University of Texas at Austin Institute of Mental Health Research

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 25 years (Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Age 18-25
  • Possession and daily use of a smart phone
  • Able to speak and read English
  • Patient Health Questionnaire -8 (PHQ-8) > 10
  • Behavioral Activation for Depression (BADS) Activation Subscale < 16
  • Ability to complete all study procedures

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Self-reported lifetime diagnosis of agoraphobia or bipolar disorder
  • Severe neurodevelopmental disorder
  • Major travel plans within study period

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: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Brief modified behavioral activation
Participants randomized to the behavioral activation condition will meet with a graduate level clinician for one hour.
Behavioral: Brief modified behavioral activation
The clinician will deliver psychoeducation about the nature of depression and the rationale behind the behavioral activation model (i.e. increasing level of activation can begin a positive feedback cycle of reward and improvements in mood state). Participants will be encouraged to add new, enjoyable activities to their daily schedules. Clinicians will emphasize the importance of novelty and increased engagement with the surrounding environment in the psychoeducational portion and in activity scheduling.
No Intervention: Measurement-only control
Participants who are not randomized to the active condition will take part in a measurement-only control condition. They will participate in all portions of the study except for the in-person behavioral activation session. They will complete a baseline and fill out daily surveys.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in Patient Health Questionnaire-8 Total Score over 5 Weeks
Time Frame: Baseline and 5 weeks
Level of depression symptoms assessed weekly by the Patient Health Questionnaire - 8 via smart phone survey. The PHQ-8 ranges from 0-24 with higher scores indicating more severe symptoms of depression.
Baseline and 5 weeks

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change in Behavioral Activation for Depression Scale over 5 Weeks
Time Frame: Baseline and 5 weeks
Level of behavioral activation as measured by the Behavioral Activation for Depression Scale (BADS). The BADS ranges from 0-150 with higher scores indicating better functioning.
Baseline and 5 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

University of Texas at Austin

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Christopher G Beevers, PhD, University of Texas at Austin

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 (Actual)

April 21, 2023

Primary Completion (Actual)

March 31, 2024

Study Completion (Actual)

March 31, 2024

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

March 2, 2023

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

March 2, 2023

First Posted (Actual)

March 14, 2023

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

August 12, 2024

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

August 8, 2024

Last Verified

August 1, 2024

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • STUDY00003773

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

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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