Isabelle Soucy Chartier1, Martin D Provencher. 1. École de Psychologie, 2325, rue des Bibliothèques, Université Laval, Quebec, QC, Canada G1V 0A6. isabelle.soucy.9@ulaval.ca
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Depression being a prevalent psychobiological disorder across the world, there is a need to identify effective, evidence-based treatments that are time and cost-effective in an effort to increase the population's accessibility to treatments. Low-intensity interventions, such as guided self-help treatments, hold promise for the dissemination of evidence-based treatments. Behavioural activation, a component of cognitive-behavioural therapy, is receiving increasing attention and empirical support as a stand-alone psychological treatment for depression. This article reviews behavioural activation's theoretical foundations and efficacy in light of determining its potential as a low-intensity intervention. METHOD: A systematic review of articles on low-intensity behavioural activation interventions for depression was conducted using the PsychInfo, Medline and Embase databases. Behavioural activation's potential for dissemination as a guided self-help treatment is discussed and future avenues of research are stressed. LIMITATIONS: Studies on the efficacy of behavioural activation as a guided self-help treatment are very limited to date and there are significant variations among existing studies. CONCLUSIONS: Based on the research literature, it can be concluded that behavioural activation could be a viable option as a low-intensity guided self-help psychological treatment for mild to moderate depression. Further research is required to better understand the optimal parameters and client-therapist characteristics of this form of low-intensity intervention.
BACKGROUND:Depression being a prevalent psychobiological disorder across the world, there is a need to identify effective, evidence-based treatments that are time and cost-effective in an effort to increase the population's accessibility to treatments. Low-intensity interventions, such as guided self-help treatments, hold promise for the dissemination of evidence-based treatments. Behavioural activation, a component of cognitive-behavioural therapy, is receiving increasing attention and empirical support as a stand-alone psychological treatment for depression. This article reviews behavioural activation's theoretical foundations and efficacy in light of determining its potential as a low-intensity intervention. METHOD: A systematic review of articles on low-intensity behavioural activation interventions for depression was conducted using the PsychInfo, Medline and Embase databases. Behavioural activation's potential for dissemination as a guided self-help treatment is discussed and future avenues of research are stressed. LIMITATIONS: Studies on the efficacy of behavioural activation as a guided self-help treatment are very limited to date and there are significant variations among existing studies. CONCLUSIONS: Based on the research literature, it can be concluded that behavioural activation could be a viable option as a low-intensity guided self-help psychological treatment for mild to moderate depression. Further research is required to better understand the optimal parameters and client-therapist characteristics of this form of low-intensity intervention.
Authors: Patrick J Raue; Jo Anne Sirey; Alexis Dawson; Jaquelin Berman; Martha L Bruce Journal: Int J Geriatr Psychiatry Date: 2019-08-08 Impact factor: 3.485
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Authors: Kristin L Schneider; Emily Panza; Barbara Handschin; Yunsheng Ma; Andrew M Busch; Molly E Waring; Bradley M Appelhans; Matthew C Whited; Jacey Keeney; Daniel Kern; Mihaela Blendea; Ira Ockene; Sherry L Pagoto Journal: Behav Ther Date: 2015-10-31