Effect of Psychoeducation on Internalized Stigma and Anxiety in Patients Receiving Electroconvulsive Therapy (PE-ECT)

May 8, 2026 updated by: Ayşe Nur Filik, Konya Necmettin Erbakan Üniversitesi

THE EFFECT OF PSYCHOEDUCATION PROGRAM APPLIED TO PATIENTS RECEIVING ELECTROCONVULSIVE THERAPY ON PATIENTS' INTERNALIZED STIGMA AND ANXIETY LEVELS: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED STUDY

This randomized controlled clinical trial was conducted to evaluate the effect of a psychoeducational programme on internalised stigma and anxiety levels in patients undergoing electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). The study aimed to determine whether the psychoeducational intervention reduces internalised stigma related to mental illness and improves anxiety outcomes compared to routine nursing care.

The primary questions addressed were:

Does the psychoeducational programme reduce internalised stigma in patients receiving ECT? Does the intervention decrease state and trait anxiety levels compared to routine care? Researchers compared a psychoeducational intervention group with a control group receiving routine nursing care to assess the effects of the programme on psychological outcomes.

Participants in the intervention group:

Received a six-session psychoeducational programme delivered individually over six weeks Completed pre-test and post-test assessments using standardized measurement tools

Participants in the control group received routine psychiatric nursing care and completed the same assessment measures at equivalent time points.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

60

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

  • Turkey (Türkiye)
    • Meram
      • Konya, Meram, Turkey (Türkiye)
        • Necmettin Erbakan University

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

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Age ≥ 18 years
  • Able to read and write in Turkish
  • At least primary school graduate
  • Diagnosed according to DSM-5 criteria with schizophrenia or other psychotic disorders, bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, or generalized anxiety disorder
  • Inpatients in a psychiatric clinic
  • Receiving or scheduled to receive electroconvulsive therapy (ECT)
  • No severe agitation or homicidal risk as determined by the treating psychiatrist
  • Voluntary consent to participate in the study

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Diagnosis of organic mental disorders (e.g., dementia, Alzheimer's disease, delirium)
  • Intellectual disability
  • History of alcohol or substance dependence
  • Not completing at least 4 ECT sessions during the treatment process

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: Health Services Research
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Psychoeducation Group (Arm 1)
Participants received a structured psychoeducational programme in addition to routine psychiatric care.
Behavioral: Psychoeducational Programme
A structured psychoeducational programme consisting of six individual face-to-face sessions delivered over six weeks by the researcher. The programme aimed to reduce internalised stigma and anxiety in patients undergoing electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) and included education about illness, treatment process, coping strategies, and emotional support.
Active Comparator: Routine Care Group (Arm 2)
Participants in this arm received routine psychiatric nursing care provided in the inpatient psychiatric clinic without any additional psychoeducational intervention.
Other: Routine Psychiatric Nursing Care
Standard psychiatric nursing care provided during electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) treatment. No structured psychoeducational programme was applied.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Internalised Stigma Scale for Mental Illness (ISMI)
Time Frame: Baseline and 6 weeks post-intervention
Change in internalized stigma levels in patients undergoing electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), measured using the Internalized Stigma of Mental Illness Scale (ISMI). Higher scores indicate higher levels of internalized stigma.
Baseline and 6 weeks post-intervention

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
State Anxiety Score (STAI-State)
Time Frame: Baseline and 6 weeks post-intervention
Change in state anxiety levels in patients undergoing electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), measured using the STAI-State subscale. Higher scores indicate higher levels of current anxiety.
Baseline and 6 weeks post-intervention
Trait Anxiety Score (STAI-Trait)
Time Frame: Baseline and 6 weeks post-intervention
Change in trait anxiety levels in patients undergoing electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), measured using the STAI-Trait subscale. Higher scores indicate general anxiety tendency.
Baseline and 6 weeks post-intervention

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

Konya Necmettin Erbakan Üniversitesi

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)

August 20, 2025

Primary Completion (Actual)

December 20, 2025

Study Completion (Actual)

April 21, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

May 8, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

May 8, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

May 14, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

May 14, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

May 8, 2026

Last Verified

May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • NEU-PhDHEM-2026-01

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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