Development of an online treatment programme for child anxiety
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Development and usability testing of an online CBT treatment programme for childhood anxiety disorders
IRAS ID
190521
Contact name
Cathy Creswell
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Reading
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
Anxiety disorders are among the most prevalent mental health disorders in childhood (Essau & Gabbidon, 2013). Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is the treatment of choice, with approximately 60% of children recovering from their diagnosis immediately after treatment, rising to around 70% one year following treatment (James et al., 2013). However, only 20-30% of children with an anxiety disorder are identified and receive treatment (Essau, 2005). One of the difficulties is that child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) are stretched, with long wait lists and not enough qualified therapists to meet the increasing demand for services. Online psychological treatments may increase access to evidence-based treatment such as CBT. These so-called “e-therapies” provide an online version of the treatment material, which is typically supported by a therapist remotely either via telephone or messages. There is growing evidence to suggest that e-therapies for anxiety disorders in children have treatment outcomes similar to traditional face-to-face therapies (Pennant et al., 2015; Rooksby et al., 2015), and may bring additional benefits such as increased therapist efficacy and cost-effectiveness (Price et al., 2014). However, the NHS has been slow to adopt these e-therapies, most of which have been developed outside of the UK by academics without substantial service user involvement. This project aims to develop an online treatment programme for childhood anxiety disorders with the involvement of those who will use it (parents, children and therapists) to ensure it meets their needs and is usable, desirable and acceptable as a therapy option within CAMHS. Service users and therapists will be involved in the development of the e-therapy throughout the development process by means of unguided exploration of the program as well as a structured interview to elicit their views on specific functions and appearance of the website and smartphone applications (apps). The e-therapy will be then revised in line with this feedback to ensure it is a viable and appealing treatment option.
REC name
London - Surrey Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
16/LO/1598
Date of REC Opinion
6 Oct 2016
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion