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Enhancing Integrative Cognitive‐Affective Therapy with ecological momentary interventions: A pilot trial
Author(s) -
Juarascio Adrienne S.,
Hunt Rowan A.,
Lantz Lesser Elin,
Engel Scott G.,
Pisetsky Emily M.,
Peterson Carol B.,
Wonderlich Stephen A.
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
european eating disorders review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.511
H-Index - 67
eISSN - 1099-0968
pISSN - 1072-4133
DOI - 10.1002/erv.2800
Subject(s) - psychological intervention , augment , cognitive behavioral therapy , cognition , clinical trial , psychology , medicine , physical therapy , clinical psychology , psychiatry , linguistics , philosophy , pathology
Objective Although current treatments are effective for some patients with eating disorders, a large number of patients remain partially or fully symptomatic post‐treatment. This may be related to poor utilization of treatment skills outside of the therapy office. Smartphone applications that can detect and intervene during moments of need could facilitate such skill use between sessions. Method Individuals ( N = 16) participated in a small pilot open trial where they received 21 sessions of in‐person Integrative Cognitive‐Affective Therapy (ICAT) therapy an app (iCAT+) that delivers ecological momentary interventions (EMI) in response to user‐entered data. Data were collected on the feasibility and acceptability of this treatment approach and on preliminary indicators of treatment outcomes. Results Participants found iCAT+ as a treatment augmentation acceptable and indicated it had clinical utility as an adjunct to in‐person therapy, although analyses indicated poor compliance with data entry needed to trigger EMI delivery. This suggests that long‐term use of EMI requiring ongoing data entry is infeasible. Conclusions We describe lessons learned from our initial pilot trial and future directions for the development of impactful EMI systems that can be used to augment in‐person therapies.