ACT for older adults: a HSCED series
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for older adults experiencing psychological distress: A hermeneutic single case efficacy design (HSCED) series.
IRAS ID
274334
Contact name
Nima Golijani-Moghaddam
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Lincoln
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 0 days
Research summary
Title: Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for older adults experiencing psychological distress: A hermeneutic single case efficacy design (HSCED) series.
Anxiety and depression in older age is associated with increased level of disability and lower quality of life (OAs; Brenes et al., 2008). Unfortunately, pharmacological treatments are disproportionality relied upon to manage the mental health of OAs (Andreescu & Reynolds, 2011). Despite cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) being the recommended psychotherapy (NICE, 2018), there is evidence that CBT is less effective for OAs than younger populations (Kishita & Laidlaw, 2017).
An alternative treatment, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), has been shown to be effective in reducing distress for OAs experiencing physical health difficulties (Gillanders & Laidlaw, 2014). Several case studies have also indicated that ACT can be effective for OAs with psychological difficulties (Petkus & Wetherell, 2013; Roberts & Sedley, 2015). ACT aims to change how a person interacts with their thoughts/feelings; to reduce avoidance; and to promote value-focused living.
The study aims to use an adjudicated HSCED to answer the following questions:
i) Is ACT an effective intervention for older adult clients experiencing psychological distress.
ii) Do meaningful changes occur for client-participants over the course of ACT intervention?
iii) What specific factors (ACT-specific, non-specific, extra-therapeutic) contribute to observed changes?
iv) Are observed changes broadly attributable to the ACT intervention?
v) What adaptations may facilitate change when using ACT with older adult clients.
For the study, up to four participants will be recruited from an OA community mental health team, each receiving up to 12 individual sessions of ACT. Participants will be required to complete a number of questionnaires throughout the study, including before/after sessions. Post-treatment, there will be a semi-structured 1:1 interview to explore any changes participants experienced, before a six-week follow-up is employed to check stability of change.
REC name
East Midlands - Derby Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
20/EM/0060
Date of REC Opinion
7 Apr 2020
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion