The STIC Norway RCT Study: Using Feedback in Psychotherapy.

NCT ID: NCT01873742

Last Updated: 2020-05-04

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: COMPLETED
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 328 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2013-06-01
• Study Completion Date: 2016-10-15

Brief Summary

Feedback in psychotherapy involves clients monitoring therapy process and progress, and on a frequent basis clients register these data into online questionnaires. These data are then fed back to the therapist, hence informing about the process and progress in therapy. This information can be shared with the client, something that may enhance the client involvement in evaluating and planning of the therapy. The same data can be used for research purpose. This randomized controlled multicenter study within Norwegian couple and family contexts will explore the effects of feedback in natural settings, and it collaborates closely with a similar American study in Chicago/Evanston, Ill.

Detailed Description

The improvement rate in psychotherapy is generally regarded as 50%, while 10% of clients deteriorate after therapy. This indicates a potential for improvement. Research shows that in therapies with the lack of progress, the clients rarely express dissatisfaction about progress to their therapists, and parallel, these therapists consider the therapies to proceed in the right direction. There is therefore a need for more knowledge about (a) how to obtain reliable information about the therapy progress and process monitored frequently during the course of therapy, and (b) that this information is fed back to the therapist and the client so that they (c) jointly can evaluate and adjust the aims and means for improving the therapy, something that may (d) enable them to test more appropriate approaches. This clinical practice should also enhance the client collaboration and empowerment in therapy, hopefully leading to higher recovery rate, shorter treatments, and reduced drop-out. To date, there is limited research on whether and how the use of feedback can contribute to improved outcomes. Such research is especially lacking in couple and family therapy. In a 3-year Norwegian pilot project at the Center for Family and relationships, Modum Bad, Department of Child and Adolescent Mental Health, Sørlandet Sykehus, and at Ålesund family counseling office, the online-based feedback system STIC (Systemic Therapy Inventory of Change) has been implemented and tested. The clinical experience is positive, and the system is considered suitable. This project has evolved parallel to a similar project at the Family Institute at Northwestern University, Evanston, Ill., supervised by the founder of the STIC system, professor William M. Pinsof. The project now enters a new phase by conducting a randomized, controlled trial (RCT) at three Norwegian couple- and family therapy sites in collaboration with five American psychotherapy sites to investigate whether the use of ongoing feedback is associated to more effective therapy compared with therapy without use of feedback.

Conditions

Psychological Feedback

Study Design

• Allocation Method: RANDOMIZED
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Primary Study Purpose: TREATMENT
• Blinding Strategy: NONE

Study Groups

The use of STIC feedback system

This will constitute the experimental condition, using of STIC feedback system.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

STIC feedback system

Intervention Type: OTHER

This condition includes the use of the STIC feedback system.

Treatment as usual

This condition will not include the use of the STIC feedback system.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

STIC feedback system

Intervention Type: OTHER

This condition includes the use of the STIC feedback system.

Interventions

STIC feedback system

This condition includes the use of the STIC feedback system.

Intervention Type: OTHER

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• individuals,
• couples,
• families in Norwegian couple- and family therapy contexts

Exclusion Criteria

• psychosis,
• current drug and alcohol abuse,
• violent and threatening behavior,
• not enable to understand Norwegian or English language.

• Minimum Eligible Age: 12 Years
• Maximum Eligible Age: 70 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Sponsors

Stiftelsen Helse og Rehabilitering

OTHER

Sponsor Role: collaborator

Modum Bad

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Terje Tilden, PhD

Terje Tilden, PhD

Responsibility Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

KariAnne Vrabel, PhD

Role: STUDY_DIRECTOR

Modum Bad Research Institute

Locations

Drammen - Kongsberg family agency

Drammen, Buskerud, Norway

Center for family and relationship, Modum Bad

Vikersund, Buskerud, Norway

ABUP, Sørlandet sykehus

Kristiansand, Vest Agder, Norway

Countries

Norway

References

Pinsof WM, Zinbarg RE, Lebow JL, Knobloch-Fedders LM, Durbin E, Chambers A, Latta T, Karam E, Goldsmith J, Friedman G. Laying the foundation for progress research in family, couple, and individual therapy: the development and psychometric features of the initial systemic therapy inventory of change. Psychother Res. 2009 Mar;19(2):143-56. doi: 10.1080/10503300802669973.

Reference Type: BACKGROUND

PMID: 19235092 (View on PubMed)

Tilden T, Johnson SU, Hoffart A, Zahl-Olsen R, Wampold BE, Ulvenes P, Haland AT. Alliance predicting progress in couple therapy. Psychotherapy (Chic). 2021 Sep;58(3):391-400. doi: 10.1037/pst0000355. Epub 2021 Feb 4.

Reference Type: DERIVED

PMID: 33539145 (View on PubMed)

Related Links

http://www.family-institute.org/research/dan-j-epstein-family-foundation-center-for-psychotherapy-change

Presentation of the Psychotherapy Change Project which is the overarching project for the STIC system.

Other Identifiers

2012/2/0275

Identifier Type: OTHER

Identifier Source: secondary_id

1-Tilden

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id