Seven-step Phenomenological Psychotherapy for Self-disorder - a Pilot Study

NCT ID: NCT06597864

Last Updated: 2025-12-09

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: RECRUITING
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 8 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2024-10-17
• Study Completion Date: 2026-03-01

Brief Summary

The goal of this clinical pilot study is to learn how adults with schizophrenia or other non-affective psychotic disorders or psychosis risk syndromes experience a novel psychotherapeutic treatment for self-disorders. The study has a qualitative, phenomenological research design. After end of treatment, the participants are interviewed about the experience of the treatment. This include how the participants liked it, if it was experienced as helpful and useful, and changes in self-experience and experience of relations to others and the world.

Detailed Description

Self-disorders are considered as central features of schizophrenia spectrum disorders which may be present both before, during, and after psychotic episodes. They are characterized by disturbances in the sense of ownership to experiences and agency of action, as well as in the sense of presence, reality and existence. They are further considered to drive symptom development during prodromal schizphrenia. Self-disorders may be very painful, and associated with anxiety, disturbances in daily functioning and increased sucidality. There is a lack of studies investigating the effect of psychotherapy on self-disorders. Hence, there is a need for developing and testing new treatment approaches to these debilitating conditions.

In this pilot study the investigators want to test a new model and manual for the treatment of self-disorders, the Seven-Step Phenomenological Psychotherapy for Self-Disorder (SSPP-SD), first developed by Dr.Med Paul Møller. This model focuses on the phenomenological exploration of self-disorders, subjective understanding, meaning and associated behaviors, psychoeducation, and the joint exploration of new meanings and understanding related to the experiences. The length of the treatment is stipulated to 14 individual sessions over 7-10 weeks. The first step of the treatment involves a semi-structured interview with the Examination of Anomalous Self-Experience (EASE).

The study has a qualitative phenomenological design where the primary research question is how the participants experienced the treatment. In more detail, the investigators want to explore both positive and negative experiences, how useful or helpful the participants experienced the treatment, and how the treatment affected self-experience and experience of relations to others and the world. These experiences will be explored in a qualitative interview following the end of treatment. In addition, the participants will answer questionnaires regarding symptoms, functioning, life quality (before and after treatment) and satisfaction with the treatment (after treatment). The study will inform the planning of a larger clinical trial testing the effect of the SSPP-SD on self-disorders in participants with psychotic disorders at Vestre Viken Hospital, Norway. Hence, in this pilot study the investigators will also register and evaluate therapist experiences of the SSPP-SD, and fidelity to the manual. The therapists will be supervised by Dr.med Paul Møller.

Six participants with schizophrenia or other ICD-10 F20-29 disorders, or with psychosis risk syndromes as defined in the Structured Interview for Psychosis-risk Syndromes (SIPS) will be included. They will be included from an outpatient clinic for psychotic disorders at Akershus University Hospital, Norway. Two experienced therapists trained in the model will offer the therapy, including project leader Dr. Tor Gunnar Værnes at the Oslo University Hospital.

Conditions

Psychosis;Schizophrenic

Study Design

• Allocation Method: NA
• Intervention Model: SINGLE_GROUP
• Primary Study Purpose: TREATMENT
• Blinding Strategy: NONE

Study Groups

Psychotherapy group

Single arm of participants receiving a phenomenologically oriented psychotherapeutic intervention

Group Type: OTHER

Seven-step phenomenological psychotherapy for self-disorders

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Phenomenological exploration of anomalous self-experiences, meaning attributions and behavioral consequences. Psychoeducation. Dialogical approach focusing on self-narratives, searching for new meaning and understanding of self-disorders

Interventions

Seven-step phenomenological psychotherapy for self-disorders

Phenomenological exploration of anomalous self-experiences, meaning attributions and behavioral consequences. Psychoeducation. Dialogical approach focusing on self-narratives, searching for new meaning and understanding of self-disorders

Intervention Type: BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

Inclusion Criteria

• Clinical diagnoses in the ICD-10-CM Code range, i.e. schizophrenia, schizotypal, delusional, and other non-mood psychotic disorders. First diagnosed no more than 3 years ago.
• Or Psychosis risk syndrome as defined in the Structured Interview of Psychosis-Risk Syndromes (SIPS) (McGlashan, Walsh, & Woods, 2010)
• Present with anomalous self-experiences, as confirmed by the Screen Questionnaire for EASE (SQuEASE-6) (Møller, 2018)
• Motivated to explore and work with anomalous self-experiences in psychotherapy

Exclusion Criteria

• Severe, ongoing psychosis
• Severe, ongoing drug abuse
• IQ<70
• Poor Norwegian language profiency

• Minimum Eligible Age: 18 Years
• Maximum Eligible Age: 39 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Sponsors

University Hospital, Akershus

OTHER

Sponsor Role: collaborator

Vestre Viken Hospital Trust

OTHER

Sponsor Role: collaborator

Oslo University Hospital

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Tor Gunnar Værnes

Principal Investigator

Responsibility Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

Tor Gunnar Værnes, Dr.philos.

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Oslo University Hospital, Early Intervention in Psychosis Advisory Unit for South-East Norway

Locations

Bærum DPS

Sandvika, Bærum, Norway

Site Status: RECRUITING

Akershus University Hospital

Oslo, , Norway

Site Status: COMPLETED

Countries

Norway

Central Contacts

Tor Gunnar Værnes, Dr.philos.

Role: CONTACT

uxvrnt@ous-hf.no

0047 92 45 56 78

Paul Møller, Dr.Med.

Role: CONTACT

Paul.Moller@vestreviken.no

0047 91 17 60 84

Facility Contacts

Lise Baklund, PhD

Role: primary

Lise.Baklund@vestreviken.no

0047 91542993

Other Identifiers

750920

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id