Work

One-Year Follow-up of Family versus Child CBT for Anxiety Disorders: Exploring the Roles of Child Age and Parental Intrusiveness

Year: 2009

Type: article

Abstract: OBJECTIVE: To compare the relative long-term benefit of family-focused cognitive behavioral therapy (FCBT) and child-focused cognitive behavioral therapy (CCBT) for child anxiety disorders at a 1-year follow-up. METHOD: Thirty-five children (6-13 years old) randomly assigned to 12-16 sessions of family-focused CBT (FCBT) or child-focused CBT (CCBT) participated in a 1-year follow-up assessment. Independent evaluators, parents, and children rated anxiety and parental intrusiveness. All were blind to treatment condition and study hypotheses. RESULTS: Children assigned to FCBT had lower anxiety scores than children assigned to CCBT on follow-up diagnostician- and parent-report scores, but not child-report scores. Exploratory analyses suggested the advantage of FCBT over CCBT may have been evident more for early adolescents than for younger children and that reductions in parental intrusiveness may have mediated the treatment effect. CONCLUSION: FCBT may yield a stronger treatment effect than CCBT that lasts for at least 1 year, although the lack of consistency across informants necessitates a circumspect view of the findings. The potential moderating and mediating effects considered in this study offer interesting avenues for further study.

Source: Child Psychiatry & Human Development

DOI: 10.1007/s10578-009-0127-z

Authors: Jeffrey J. Wood, Bryce D. McLeod, John C. Piacentini, Marian Sigman

Institutions: University of California, Los Angeles, Virginia Commonwealth University

Language: English

Topic: Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development

Subfield: Clinical Psychology

Field: Psychology

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,390