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BACKGROUND:Only 40-60% of patients with generalized anxiety disorder experience long-lasting improvement with gold standard psychosocial interventions. Identifying neurobehavioral factors that predict treatment success might provide specific targets for more individualized interventions, fostering more optimal outcomes and bringing us closer to the goal of "personalized medicine." Research suggests that reward and threat processing (approach/avoidance behavior) and cognitive control may be important for understanding anxiety and comorbid depressive disorders and may have relevance to treatment outcomes. This study was designed to determine whether approach-avoidance behaviors and associated neural responses moderate treatment response to exposure-based versus behavioral activation therapy for generalized anxiety disorder. METHODS/DESIGN:We are conducting a randomized controlled trial involving two 10-week group-based interventions: exposure-based therapy or behavioral activation therapy. These interventions focus on specific and unique aspects of threat and reward processing, respectively. Prior to and after treatment, participants are interviewed and undergo behavioral, biomarker, and neuroimaging assessments, with a focus on approach and avoidance processing and decision-making. Primary analyses will use mixed models to examine whether hypothesized approach, avoidance, and conflict arbitration behaviors and associated neural responses at baseline moderate symptom change with treatment, as assessed using the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 item scale. Exploratory analyses will examine additional potential treatment moderators and use data reduction and machine learning methods. DISCUSSION:This protocol provides a framework for how studies may be designed to move the field toward neuroscience-informed and personalized psychosocial treatments. The results of this trial will have implications for approach-avoidance processing in generalized anxiety disorder, relationsh

BACKGROUND:Only 40-60% of patients with generalized anxiety disorder experience long-lasting improvement with gold standard psychosocial interventions. Identifying neurobehavioral factors that predict treatment success might provide specific targets for more individualized interventions, fostering more optimal outcomes and bringing us closer to the goal of "personalized medicine." Research suggests that reward and threat processing (approach/avoidance behavior) and cognitive control may be important for understanding anxiety and comorbid depressive disorders and may have relevance to treatment outcomes. This study was designed to determine whether approach-avoidance behaviors and associated neural responses moderate treatment response to exposure-based versus behavioral activation therapy for generalized anxiety disorder. METHODS/DESIGN:We are conducting a randomized controlled trial involving two 10-week group-based interventions: exposure-based therapy or behavioral activation therapy. These interventions focus on specific and unique aspects of threat and reward processing, respectively. Prior to and after treatment, participants are interviewed and undergo behavioral, biomarker, and neuroimaging assessments, with a focus on approach and avoidance processing and decision-making. Primary analyses will use mixed models to examine whether hypothesized approach, avoidance, and conflict arbitration behaviors and associated neural responses at baseline moderate symptom change with treatment, as assessed using the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 item scale. Exploratory analyses will examine additional potential treatment moderators and use data reduction and machine learning methods. DISCUSSION:This protocol provides a framework for how studies may be designed to move the field toward neuroscience-informed and personalized psychosocial treatments. The results of this trial will have implications for approach-avoidance processing in generalized anxiety disorder, relationsh

Contains fulltext : 197125.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access), Few studies have investigated the association between psychotherapeutic approaches and their processes in routine psychological practice. We compared cognitive therapy (CT) and behavioral activation (BA) on their effectiveness and change processes. Forty-three depressed patients participated in our trial. Scores on depression and specific and nonspecific factors were collected at seven time points and analyzed using RM-ANOVA and multiple linear regressions. No differences in depression reduction emerged between conditions. Most processes changed during therapy. Only measures of negative cognitions and behavioral activation interacted with treatment condition. Change on the processes did not predict symptom alleviation. Similarly, reductions in depression were not followed by change on any of the process measures. Both psychotherapeutic approaches led to significant and comparable symptom reduction. There was no clear evidence of differential change with respect to purported underlying mechanisms. The results are discussed in the context of therapy and research.

Contains fulltext : 197125.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access), Few studies have investigated the association between psychotherapeutic approaches and their processes in routine psychological practice. We compared cognitive therapy (CT) and behavioral activation (BA) on their effectiveness and change processes. Forty-three depressed patients participated in our trial. Scores on depression and specific and nonspecific factors were collected at seven time points and analyzed using RM-ANOVA and multiple linear regressions. No differences in depression reduction emerged between conditions. Most processes changed during therapy. Only measures of negative cognitions and behavioral activation interacted with treatment condition. Change on the processes did not predict symptom alleviation. Similarly, reductions in depression were not followed by change on any of the process measures. Both psychotherapeutic approaches led to significant and comparable symptom reduction. There was no clear evidence of differential change with respect to purported underlying mechanisms. The results are discussed in the context of therapy and research.

Contains fulltext : 197125.pdf (publisher's version ) (Open Access), Few studies have investigated the association between psychotherapeutic approaches and their processes in routine psychological practice. We compared cognitive therapy (CT) and behavioral activation (BA) on their effectiveness and change processes. Forty-three depressed patients participated in our trial. Scores on depression and specific and nonspecific factors were collected at seven time points and analyzed using RM-ANOVA and multiple linear regressions. No differences in depression reduction emerged between conditions. Most processes changed during therapy. Only measures of negative cognitions and behavioral activation interacted with treatment condition. Change on the processes did not predict symptom alleviation. Similarly, reductions in depression were not followed by change on any of the process measures. Both psychotherapeutic approaches led to significant and comparable symptom reduction. There was no clear evidence of differential change with respect to purported underlying mechanisms. The results are discussed in the context of therapy and research.

Background: A major problem today is that only about fifty percent of those affected by depression seek help. One way to reach more sufferers would be by offering easily accessible internet based treatments. The purpose of this study was to compare/evaluate four therapist supported internet administered treatments. Method /Results: Two hundred eighty six participants were included. The treatment period lasted twelve weeks, consisting of the following treatments: 1) physical activity without treatment rational, 2) physical activity with treatment rational, 3) behavioral activation based on Lewinshon’s (1974) model and 4) behavioral activation based on Martell’s model (Martell et al., 2010). All groups (including a control-group) showed a significant decrease in depressive symptoms. When the treatment groups were pooled and compared to the control group, there were significant differences from pretest to posttest (Hedges gav treatment = 1.01, control group = 0.47). This held true also when each of the four treatment groups was compared to the control group, with one exception: Physical activity without treatment rationale. Limitations: The differences between how many modules the participants completed could indicate that there are other factors than the treatments that caused the symptom reduction, however, the dose-response analysis did not detect any significant differences on account of modules completed. Conclusions: The results support the positive effects of internet administered treatments for depression and highlights the importance of psychoeducation, which tends to affect both the treatment outcome and the probability of remaining in treatment. These aspects need to be considered when developing and conducting new treatments for depression since they would increase the likelihood of positive treatment outcomes., Abstract available in the Conference App Elsevier Conferences (ISRII2017).

Despite their potential as low-threshold, low-cost and high-flexibility treatments of depression, behavioral activation and physical exercise have not yet been directly compared. This study has examined the effects of these interventions, administered via the Internet. In this randomized controlled trial a total of 312 participants meeting the diagnostic criteria for mild to moderate major depression, recruited in multiple cycles and randomized to either a waiting list control group with delayed treatment, or one of the four active treatment groups: (1) physical exercise without a clear psychological treatment rationale; (2) physical exercise with a psychological treatment rationale; (3)behavioral activation a la Lewinsohn; or (4) behavioral activation a la Martel. A total of 72% were women and the average age of the participants were M=42.3 years (SD=13,5). More than half (53,9%) had a history of previous psychological treatment. Primary outcome measure was the 9-item Patient Health Questionnaire. Assessments were made on a weekly basis for the full duration of the acute treatment which was 12 weeks. The preliminary results are in line with previous online studies showing that all active treatment groups were superior to the waitlist (large effect sizes) and that only minor differences could be identified between the four active groups (large within effect sizes). At the time of the conference 6-month follow-up data will be available in addition to the already collected post-assessment data (analyzed according to the intention-to-treat principle).

The objective of the 15 Monterey workshops since 1992 has been to increase the practical impact of the formal methods in computer-aided software development. The workshops seek to improve software practice via the application of engineering theory and to encourage development of engineering theory that is well suited for this purpose. The 2007 workshop focused on requirements, particularly the process of transforming vague and uncoordinated needs of individual stakeholders into consistent and well-defined requirements that are suitable for supporting automated and computeraided methods for engineering subtasks in the subsequent development process. Innovations are effective technology transfers of sound inventions. The workshop case study was targeted at identification and assessment of sound inventions of technology that can be used to support innovations in requirement engineering. For example, we wanted to gain a better understanding about how to deal with natural language as the vehicle from which we derive system/software requirements, how to use intelligent agents as entities to facilitate semi-automatic requirements-documentation analysis, and how to build automatic systems to aid in requirements/specifications elicitation. The overall aim was to exchange ideas for continued research in the intersection of these two areas and to reduce the gap between theory and practice., National Science Foundation (U.S.), United States Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, DARPA 07-W673., Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited.

The objective of the 15 Monterey workshops since 1992 has been to increase the practical impact of the formal methods in computer-aided software development. The workshops seek to improve software practice via the application of engineering theory and to encourage development of engineering theory that is well suited for this purpose. The 2007 workshop focused on requirements, particularly the process of transforming vague and uncoordinated needs of individual stakeholders into consistent and well-defined requirements that are suitable for supporting automated and computeraided methods for engineering subtasks in the subsequent development process. Innovations are effective technology transfers of sound inventions. The workshop case study was targeted at identification and assessment of sound inventions of technology that can be used to support innovations in requirement engineering. For example, we wanted to gain a better understanding about how to deal with natural language as the vehicle from which we derive system/software requirements, how to use intelligent agents as entities to facilitate semi-automatic requirements-documentation analysis, and how to build automatic systems to aid in requirements/specifications elicitation. The overall aim was to exchange ideas for continued research in the intersection of these two areas and to reduce the gap between theory and practice.

The objective of the 15 Monterey workshops since 1992 has been to increase the practical impact of the formal methods in computer-aided software development. The workshops seek to improve software practice via the application of engineering theory and to encourage development of engineering theory that is well suited for this purpose. The 2007 workshop focused on requirements, particularly the process of transforming vague and uncoordinated needs of individual stakeholders into consistent and well-defined requirements that are suitable for supporting automated and computeraided methods for engineering subtasks in the subsequent development process. Innovations are effective technology transfers of sound inventions. The workshop case study was targeted at identification and assessment of sound inventions of technology that can be used to support innovations in requirement engineering. For example, we wanted to gain a better understanding about how to deal with natural language as the vehicle from which we derive system/software requirements, how to use intelligent agents as entities to facilitate semi-automatic requirements-documentation analysis, and how to build automatic systems to aid in requirements/specifications elicitation. The overall aim was to exchange ideas for continued research in the intersection of these two areas and to reduce the gap between theory and practice.