Three-Arm Quasi-Experimental Study of App-Assisted Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms
A Three-Arm Quasi-Experimental Study Comparing Treatment-as-Usual, Face-to-Face Acceptance and Commitment Therapy With App-Assisted Support, and Online Acceptance and Commitment Therapy With App-Assisted Support for PTSD Symptoms
The goal of this clinical trial is to compare the efficacy of three Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) delivery modalities in treating Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in adult patients (ages 20-40) with mild to moderate PTSD severity in Pakistan.
The main questions it aims to answer are:
- Do participants show significant reductions in psychological inflexibility, emotional dysregulation, and PTSD symptom severity from pre- to post-intervention?
- Which ACT delivery modality - treatment as usual (TAU/clinic-only), clinician-guided with web-app assistance, or online-only with web-app assistance - produces the greatest improvements in these outcomes?
Researchers will compare three groups: (A) TAU receiving clinic-based ACT sessions without app support, (B) clinic-based ACT sessions assisted by the "ACT PTSD" web application, and (C) fully online ACT delivery with web-app support - to determine whether digital augmentation enhances treatment outcomes beyond standard clinical delivery.
Participants will:
- Complete baseline assessments (PCL-5, AAQ-II, DERS-SF, PDEQ-SF) at intake
- Attend 12 weekly individual ACT sessions (30-45 minutes each) covering psychoeducation, acceptance, cognitive defusion, self-as-context, grounding, values clarification, committed action, trauma processing, and relapse prevention
- Use the "ACT PTSD" web application between sessions (Groups B and C), which delivers the six ACT core processes through guided exercises, audio tracks, symptom tracking, and therapist messaging
- Complete post-intervention assessments and one follow-up session after the 12-week program
研究概览
研究类型
注册 (实际的)
阶段
- 不适用
联系人和位置
学习地点
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-
Punjab Province
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Lahore、Punjab Province、巴基斯坦、54000
- Lubna DAR
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参与标准
资格标准
适合学习的年龄
- 成人
接受健康志愿者
描述
Inclusion Criteria:
- Clinically diagnosed individual having PTSD.
- Individuals having a minimum education level of graduation degree
- Individuals who can provide informed consent.
Exclusion Criteria:
- Individuals with primary diagnoses other than PTSD.
- Individuals with a neurological history.
- Individuals having brain damage by birth or due to any traumatic injury
学习计划
研究是如何设计的?
设计细节
- 主要用途:治疗
- 分配:非随机化
- 介入模型:并行分配
- 屏蔽:无(打开标签)
武器和干预
参与者组/臂 |
干预/治疗 |
|---|---|
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实验性的:TREATMENT AS USUAL
Patients received Acceptance Commitment Therapy in clinical setting.
This phase was the treatment phase of the study.
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The ACT Path web application is a clinician-gated, ACT-based treatment-assistance tool developed specifically for adults with PTSD.
Unlike self-administered apps, it operates within a therapist-controlled workflow: clients access 12 structured weekly sessions only after clinical approval, with session assignment (including flexible sequencing of trauma narrative work) guided by the therapist.
All six ACT hexaflex processes are delivered via interactive sessions with embedded audio guidance and gamified defusion exercises.
Built-in validated assessments (PCL-5, AAQ-II, DERS-SF, PDEQ-SF) auto-score and populate a therapist dashboard; a unique safety screen flags suicidal ideation and harm risk across three timeframes.
A panic button provides crisis support.
Cultural adaptation for a collectivistic, low-resource context distinguishes it from existing Western-developed PTSD apps.
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实验性的:Face-to-face ACT with app support
Received ACT intervention through face-to-face sessions along with web-based app assistance.
|
The ACT Path web application is a clinician-gated, ACT-based treatment-assistance tool developed specifically for adults with PTSD.
Unlike self-administered apps, it operates within a therapist-controlled workflow: clients access 12 structured weekly sessions only after clinical approval, with session assignment (including flexible sequencing of trauma narrative work) guided by the therapist.
All six ACT hexaflex processes are delivered via interactive sessions with embedded audio guidance and gamified defusion exercises.
Built-in validated assessments (PCL-5, AAQ-II, DERS-SF, PDEQ-SF) auto-score and populate a therapist dashboard; a unique safety screen flags suicidal ideation and harm risk across three timeframes.
A panic button provides crisis support.
Cultural adaptation for a collectivistic, low-resource context distinguishes it from existing Western-developed PTSD apps.
|
|
实验性的:Online ACT with app support
Online ACT intervention along with web-based app assitance.
|
The ACT Path web application is a clinician-gated, ACT-based treatment-assistance tool developed specifically for adults with PTSD.
Unlike self-administered apps, it operates within a therapist-controlled workflow: clients access 12 structured weekly sessions only after clinical approval, with session assignment (including flexible sequencing of trauma narrative work) guided by the therapist.
All six ACT hexaflex processes are delivered via interactive sessions with embedded audio guidance and gamified defusion exercises.
Built-in validated assessments (PCL-5, AAQ-II, DERS-SF, PDEQ-SF) auto-score and populate a therapist dashboard; a unique safety screen flags suicidal ideation and harm risk across three timeframes.
A panic button provides crisis support.
Cultural adaptation for a collectivistic, low-resource context distinguishes it from existing Western-developed PTSD apps.
|
研究衡量的是什么?
主要结果指标
结果测量 |
措施说明 |
大体时间 |
|---|---|---|
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PCL-5
大体时间:pre-intervention and immediatly after the intervention
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PCL-5 is a 20-item self-report measure designed to evaluate the severity of PTSD symptoms.
The scale uses a 5-point Likert scale from 0-4 (0= Not at all & 4=Extremely).
The scores range from 0 to 80.
The scales showed good internal reliability with a Cronbach's Alpha value of 0.90.
The scale has no reverse-coded items.
The scale has 4 subscales: Cluster B: Intrusion symptoms (5 items), Cluster C: Avoidance (2 items), Cluster D: Negative alterations in cognitions and mood (7 items), and Cluster E: Alterations in arousal and reactivity (6 items)
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pre-intervention and immediatly after the intervention
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Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-II (AAQ-II)
大体时间:pre-intervention and immediatly after the intervention
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Psychological inflexibility was measured with the Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-II (AAQ-II), which is a brief 7-item self-report measure.
AAQ-II uses a 7-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (never true) to 7 (always true).
The scale is also a unidimensional scale with no reverse coding.
Low scores indicate the presence of psychological flexibility, whereas higher scores indicate higher psychological inflexibility.
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pre-intervention and immediatly after the intervention
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Difficulty in Emotion Regulation Scale Short Form (DERS-SF)
大体时间:pre-intervention and immediatly after the intervention
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The DERS-SF is an 18-item self-report measure designed to evaluate individuals' typical patterns of emotional regulation difficulties while maintaining the score structure of the original DERS.
The scale utilizes a 5-point Likert scale (1=Almost never to 5=Almost always).
The total score ranges from 18 to 90; a higher score indicates higher emotional dysregulation.
The scale also showed good internal reliability, 0.89-0.94.
The scale has 6 subscales: Non-acceptance of emotional responses (3 items), difficulty engaging in goal-directed behavior (3 items), impulse control difficulties (3 items), lack of emotional awareness (3 items), limited access to emotion regulation strategies (3 items), and lack of emotional clarity (3 items).
All the items of lack of emotional awareness are reverse-coded items.
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pre-intervention and immediatly after the intervention
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合作者和调查者
调查人员
- 首席研究员:Lubna DAR、University of Central Punjab
- 首席研究员:SHAZIA HASAN、University of Central Punjab
研究记录日期
研究主要日期
学习开始 (实际的)
初级完成 (实际的)
研究完成 (实际的)
研究注册日期
首次提交
首先提交符合 QC 标准的
首次发布 (实际的)
研究记录更新
最后更新发布 (实际的)
上次提交的符合 QC 标准的更新
最后验证
更多信息
与本研究相关的术语
其他研究编号
- UCP/PSY/PUB/0063
计划个人参与者数据 (IPD)
计划共享个人参与者数据 (IPD)?
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