Effects of standard and explicit cognitive bias modification and computer-administered cognitive-behaviour therapy on cognitive biases and social anxiety

Autor: Jo Illingworth, Sirous Mobini, Peter E. Langdon, Lina Gega, Laura Hoppitt, Bundy Mackintosh
Rok vydání: 2014
Předmět:
Zdroj: Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry
ISSN: 0005-7916
DOI: 10.1016/j.jbtep.2013.12.002
Popis: Background and objectives This study examines the effects of a single session of Cognitive Bias Modification to induce positive Interpretative bias (CBM-I) using standard or explicit instructions and an analogue of computer-administered CBT (c-CBT) program on modifying cognitive biases and social anxiety. Methods A sample of 76 volunteers with social anxiety attended a research site. At both pre- and post-test, participants completed two computer-administered tests of interpretative and attentional biases and a self-report measure of social anxiety. Participants in the training conditions completed a single session of either standard or explicit CBM-I positive training and a c-CBT program. Participants in the Control (no training) condition completed a CBM-I neutral task matched the active CBM-I intervention in format and duration but did not encourage positive disambiguation of socially ambiguous or threatening scenarios. Results Participants in both CBM-I programs (either standard or explicit instructions) and the c-CBT condition exhibited more positive interpretations of ambiguous social scenarios at post-test and one-week follow-up as compared to the Control condition. Moreover, the results showed that CBM-I and c-CBT, to some extent, changed negative attention biases in a positive direction. Furthermore, the results showed that both CBM-I training conditions and c-CBT reduced social anxiety symptoms at one-week follow-up. Limitations This study used a single session of CBM-I training, however multi-sessions intervention might result in more endurable positive CBM-I changes. Conclusions A computerised single session of CBM-I and an analogue of c-CBT program reduced negative interpretative biases and social anxiety.
Highlights • Standard and Explicit Cognitive Bias Modification for interpretative biases (CBM-I). • Computer-administered CBT (c-CBT) for social anxiety as an alternative intervention. • Standard and explicit CBM-I and c-CBT increased positive interpretations. • Explicit instructions did not enhance CBM-I effects on interpretative biases. • CBM-I training and c-CBT reduced social anxiety at one-week follow-up.
Databáze: OpenAIRE