Targeting Cognitive Immunization in Depression

Major Depressive Disorder Clinical Trial

Official title: How Can Change of Dysfunctional Expectations in Major Depression be Enhanced? An Experimental Study Targeting Cognitive Immunization

Status Completed

Clinical Trial Summary

Research has shown that people suffering from MDD tend to maintain dysfunctional expectations despite experiences that disconfirm expectations. Recently, it has been shown that this persistence of expectations is due to maladaptive information processing involving "cognitive immunization". This experimental study aims at testing three different strategies to inhibit cognitive immunization, in order to enhance expectation change.

Clinical Trial Description

It appears adaptive to change one's expectations when continuously gaining expectation-disconfirming experiences; however, research has shown that people suffering from MDD have difficulty in changing their expectations after experiences that disconfirm expectations. Recently, the investigators have shown that this persistence of expectations is due to maladaptive information processing involving "cognitive immunization", defined as a cognitive reappraisal of expectation-disconfirming experiences in such a way that the individual's expectations are maintained. In view of psychotherapeutic interventions aiming to modify patients' dysfunctional expectations, effective strategies to inhibit cognitive immunization strategies need to be identified. Therefore, the aim of this study was to compare different immunization-inhibiting strategies with regard to their effectivity in enhancing expectation change. For this purpose, the investigators use a standardized experimental paradigm, which was developed and validated in a previous study. ;

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Depression
• Depressive Disorder
• Depressive Disorder, Major
• Major Depressive Disorder

• NCT number: NCT03460574
• Study type: Interventional
• Source: Philipps University Marburg Medical Center
• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Start date: October 14, 2017
• Completion date: August 21, 2018