Group-based DBT skills training modules are linked to independent and additive improvements in emotion regulation in a heterogeneous outpatient sample

Feasibility and acceptability of an online group dialectical behavioural therapy skills training in a Transdiagnostic group with Anxiety and Depression

Transdiagnostic approaches offers a paradigm shift in managing psychiatric disorders. Emotion regulation difficulties are a transdiagnostic prevalent across various mood and personality disorders. Dialectical Behavioural Therapy Skills Training (DBT-ST), initially designed as part of treatment for borderline personality disorder, targets emotion regulation and has shown promise in diverse psychiatric conditions. In lower middle-income countries with resource-constrained settings, online delivery of evidence-based interventions holds potential to bridge treatment gaps. This study assesses the feasibility and acceptability of online group DBT skills training for individuals with depression or anxiety disorders in India. Mental health professionals practising in India referred twenty-four eligible participants currently not engaged in psychotherapy. Of these, 18 initiated the 8-week virtual group DBT-ST program, with 12 completing it (66 % female, 18-35 years of age, 5 on concurrent medication). They provided feedback on therapy content's usefulness. Baseline, post-intervention, and one-month follow-up assessments measured changes in emotion regulation difficulties, depression, and anxiety symptoms. Treatment retained 66.7 % of participants, all participants found the intervention beneficial. Repeated measures ANOVA indicates significant reductions in self-reported difficulties in emotion regulation, depression, and anxiety symptoms post-intervention. These findings highlight the promise of transdiagnostic interventions like DBT-ST that merit further evaluations using RCTs with larger sample sizes.

[Effects of Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) Skills Training on Depression and Anxiety Disorders - A Pilot Study under Routine Care Conditions]

OBJECTIVE

Skills training as an integral part of dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT) is highly effective in the treatment of borderline personality disorder. Research interest is increasingly focused on the transdiagnostic effects of the skills training on depression and anxiety disorders. The present study examined the extent to which the findings of high-quality randomized controlled studies can be transferred to everyday treatment under routine care conditions.

METHODS

N=26 patients without personality disorders were treated in a day clinic over a period of eight weeks. In the control group, 11 patients received routine care treatment and in the experimental group 15 patients additionally received weekly skills training. Symptom distress, as well as emotion regulation and mindfulness were assessed longitudinally at three time points. Multilevel analyzes were used to examine whether there was an additive effect of the skills training.

RESULTS

The experimental group was superior to the control group in all endpoints. The effect sizes were comparable to those from experimental research. Improvements in mindfulness were significantly correlated with reductions in symptom distress.

DISCUSSION

The findings fit into previous research efforts and complement them with a naturalistic research perspective. The advantages and disadvantages of an experimental and naturalistic research perspective are discussed, and relevant limitations of the present study are highlighted.

CONCLUSION

Skills training is an established, flexible, modular therapy program that is ideal for improving the adaptability of patients with different psychological diagnoses.

Transdiagnostic skills training group of dialectical behavior therapy: a long-term naturalistic study

INTRODUCTION

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) has assembled a large body of evidence for the treatment of emotional dysregulation in borderline personality disorder (BPD), but also in other disorders characterized by emotional dysregulation (e.g., bipolar disorder (BD) and ADHD). Standalone skills learning groups address the problem of limited resources in several clinical settings. Furthermore, transdiagnostic skills groups facilitate the recruitment and decrease the scattering of resources in psychiatric settings. However, few studies have focused on the pertinence of transdiagnostic standalone skills groups in naturalistic settings as well as their long-term outcomes. The goal of this study is to assess the impact of participation in a transdiagnostic DBT skills group one year after its completion.

METHOD

Transdiagnostic DBT skills training groups were provided for BPD, BD and ADHD patients in a University Psychiatric Department (Strasbourg, France), between 2019 and 2020. They consisted of 16 group sessions of 2.5 h and 3 individual sessions. At 1-year follow-up, ad-hoc questionnaires were proposed to all participants to assess the perceived impacts, the changes in symptomatology, and the maintenance of skills learned.

RESULT

22 of the 31 participants were interviewed at the one-year post-group session (64% BPD, 41% ADHD and 27% BD). 73% participants estimated that group impact was important or very important, 64% stated using the skills learned often or very often, mainly emotion regulation skills. An improvement in emotional instability, substance use, impulsivity and suicidal thoughts was reported by respectively 100%, 91%, 86% and 85% of participants. Quality of life improved according to 90% participants. All patients reported an improvement in suicidality during the post-group year, especially in suicide attempts. Psychotropic medication decreased in 59% of participants.

DISCUSSION

Our one-year naturalistic study suggests that transdiagnostic DBT skills training groups are promising for the treatment of emotional dysregulation in people with BPD, BD and/or ADHD. The observational design and the lack of control group are the main limitations. Randomized controlled studies are required to confirm the long-term efficacy of transdiagnostic skills learning groups in naturalistic settings.

Mechanisms of change in treatments for transdiagnostic emotion dysregulation: The roles of skills use, perceived control and mindfulness

Emotion dysregulation (ED) is a key target for change among empirically supported treatments for emotional disorders, including dialectical behaviour therapy skills training (DBT-ST), yet how treatments improve ED is poorly understood. Using data from a randomised trial of DBT-ST versus supportive group therapy for transdiagnostic ED, we tested whether three mechanistic variables-behavioural skills use, mindfulness, and perceived control-explain variability in ED within people over time. We additionally explored the mediating roles of these variables between conditions. Adults with transdiagnostic ED (N = 44) participated in weekly groups for 4 months, with assessments at pre-, mid- and post-treatment and at 2-month follow-up. As hypothesised, multilevel models disaggregating within- and between-person effects indicated that skills use, mindfulness, and perceived control each had significant total and unique within-person associations with ED at concurrent time points, net the effect of time. Unexpectedly, these within-person relations were not significant for mechanistic variables predicting ED 2 months later. Further, unique between-person variability in skills use, mindfulness, and perceived control did not significantly mediate the relationship between condition and ED improvements. The present study is an important step in clarifying ED mechanisms of change, both within and between persons.