In a recent article, released in the latest issue of Cognitive Therapy and Research (Doi 10,1007/S10608-014-9637-5), Gkika and Wells present the first trialevidently preliminary and exploratory, on Comparison of effectiveness of cognitive and metacognitive techniques for the treatment of social anxiety.
Specifically, cognitive renovation has been tested if the study called Te – Thought Evaluation) or Detched MinduFulness (DM) has been more effective.
As well as well known, the TE is one of the main techniques of the CBT approach, thanks to which the therapist helps the patient to change his underground beliefs and build more functional and adaptive.
DM is a typical technique of metacognitive therapy (MCT), through which the therapist helps the patient to take a different attitude towards his own thoughts, promoting greater awareness of his mental processes combined with a suspension of cognitive control reactions, such as rumination and brooding.
In the Social anxiety disorderit is known that both anticipatory processes (anxiety, expectations, associated images) and focus on si self and on their perceived image as a negative are central and maintenance factors.
The purpose of the study was to compare the effectiveness of the DM and Te in modifying these specific factors involved in maintenance of social phobia; The hypotheses, specifically, are that both techniques are able to decrease the anticipatory processes, anxiety, negative thoughts and the tendency to perceive themselves in perspective of the field and that the DM involves a greater change than you.
The participants were recruited among the university population. The inclusion criteria were a score greater than 22 at the FNE (Fear of Negative Evaluation), a score of less than 13 (for positive assessments) and greater than 12 (for negative evaluations) to the Self-Statements During Public Speaking Scale (SSPS) and a score of less than 21 at the Depression Stairs of the Depression and Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS). 205 participants were enrolledof which only 16 subjects have exceeded the criteria.
Of these, 12 agreed to participate (all women), a person refused, while three were excluded because the score had come down to the repetition of the FNE.
Initially the participants were asked to indicate, from 0 to 100, as they believed in their negative thoughts. Subsequently, each participant was asked to prepare for 3 minutes for a public speech, also 3 minutes; After keeping the speech, each participant gave a score to his own thoughts.
After the speech, the participants were subjected to 15 minutes of you or DM with a therapist, asking them to evaluate how effective the technique had heard. Subsequently, they were asked to practice alone for 5 minutes in the technique just learned.
Then he was asked again to prepare for 3 minutes for a public speech, always 3 minutes, at the end of which the subject reevaluated his negative thoughts.
Finally, the procedure was repeated by changing the technique used: if first the participants tried the Te, in the second part they experienced the DM and vice versa.
The results seem to confirm the hypotheses formulated by the authors in terms of superiority of the DM compared to you. However, the limits of the study must be considered, such as the limited and non -clinical champion, in addition to the fact that a single technique is implemented for 15 minutes, therefore it is not a real therapy protocol.
In addition, the participants who, in the trial, first received the Te’s average basements of the lower bases than the subjects who received first DM.
In any case, however, the article lays the foundations for future research that further evaluate the effectiveness of the protocols of metacognitive therapy in the treatment of Social anxiety disorder.
