What makes a trauma 'pathological'? - Perceived peritraumatic threat influences the development of intrusive memories.

Intrusions are a hallmark symptom of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). While dysfunctional cognitions are known posttraumatic contributors, peritraumatic processes are less understood. Perceived threat, alongside emotional factors, is theorized as significant, but experimental studies are lacking.

[Psyche in Climate Crisis?An Update on Ecological Psychiatry and Psychotherapy].

The human-caused climate crisis is advancing relentlessly and poses a global threat. But to what extent is our psyche also in crisis due to climate change? This article explores the profound impacts of the climate crisis and environmental destruction on mental health, advocating for a comprehensive, ecologically-oriented approach to psychiatry and psychotherapy.

Heterogeneity of Treatment Effects in Internet- and Mobile-Based Interventions for Depression: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Importance: While the effects of internet- and mobile-based interventions (IMIs) for depression have been extensively studied, no systematic evidence is available regarding the heterogeneity of treatment effects (HTEs), indicating to what extent patient-by-treatment interactions exist and personalized treatment models might be necessary.

Objective: To investigate the HTEs in IMIs for depression as well as their efficacy and effectiveness.

Data Sources: A systematic search in Embase, MEDLINE, Central, and PsycINFO for randomized clinical trials and supplementary reference searches was conducted on October 13, 2019, and updated March 25, 2022.

The crisis is over, long live the crisis: mental health in emerging adulthood during the course of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Introduction: As a multidimensional stressor, the COVID-19 pandemic posed a significant threat to mental health, with studies showing younger age groups to be particularly vulnerable. Thus, this study aimed to monitor mental health, potential risk/protective factors, and pandemic-related variables among young university students during the pandemic.

Methods: Students of the University of Greifswald (M age = 23.

Efficacy and acceptability of third-wave psychotherapies in the treatment of depression: a network meta-analysis of controlled trials.

Introduction: In recent decades, various new psychotherapy approaches have been developed in an effort to overcome issues of non-response, referred to as "third-wave psychotherapies." How third-wave therapies perform in comparison to each other, to classical CBT, or other common comparators in the treatment of depression has not yet been systematically assessed.

Methods: We firstly determined the scope of the term "third-wave" by conducting a systematic search.

What if we wait? Using synthetic waiting lists to estimate treatment effects in routine outcome data.

Due to the lack of randomization, pre-post routine outcome data precludes causal conclusions. We propose the "synthetic waiting list" (SWL) control group to overcome this limitation. First, a step-by-step introduction illustrates this novel approach.

[Inpatient psychotherapy of depressive disorders: options and challenges].

Background: The psychotherapy of depressive disorders has become established as a central component of inpatient treatment in psychiatric and psychosomatic hospitals and furthermore constitutes an important component of the residency training in Germany; however, the number of studies examining the effectiveness and efficacy is limited.

Methods: This narrative review summarizes the current state of research on inpatient psychotherapy for depressive disorders. The results of meta-analyses as well as practice-based observational studies from routine treatment in Germany, disorder-specific special programs, and side effects of inpatient psychotherapy are summarized.

Testing Bayesian models of belief updating in the context of depressive symptomatology.

Objectives: Predictive processing approaches to belief updating in depression propose that depression is related to more negative and more precise priors. Also, belief updating is assumed be negatively biased in comparison to normative Bayesian updating. There is a lack of efficient methods to mathematically model belief updating in depression.

Association of loneliness and social network size in adulthood with childhood maltreatment: Analyses of a population-based and a clinical sample.

Background: Perceived loneliness and objective social network size are related but distinct factors, which negatively affect mental health and are prevalent in patients who have experienced childhood maltreatment (CM), for example, patients with persistent depressive disorder (PDD) and borderline personality disorder (BPD). This cross-diagnostic study investigated whether loneliness, social network size, or both are associated with self-reported CM.

Methods: Loneliness and social network size were assessed in a population-based sample at two time points (Study 1,  = 509), and a clinical group of patients with PDD or BPD (Study 2,  = 190) using the UCLA Loneliness Scale and the Social Network Index.

Adding an App-Based Intervention to the Cognitive Behavioral Analysis System of Psychotherapy in Routine Outpatient Psychotherapy Treatment: Proof-of-Concept Study.

Background: The Cognitive Behavioral Analysis System of Psychotherapy (CBASP) is an empirically supported psychotherapeutic treatment developed specifically for persistent depressive disorder. However, given the high rates of nonresponse and relapse, there is a need for optimization. Studies suggest that outcomes can be improved by increasing the treatment dose via, for example, the continuous web-based application of therapy strategies between sessions.

Fostering compliance with physical distancing by interactive feedback in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic: A web-based randomized controlled trial.

Background: To slow down the spread of COVID-19, the observance of basic hygiene measures, and physical distancing is recommended. Initial findings suggest that physical distancing in particular can prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Objectives: To investigate how information to prevent the spread of infectious diseases should be presented to increase willingness to comply with preventive measures.

Assessing Dysfunctional Expectations in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: Development and Validation of the Posttraumatic Expectations Scale (PTES).

Dysfunctional expectations are a particularly important subset of cognitions that influence the development and maintenance of various mental disorders. This study aimed to develop and validate a scale to assess dysfunctional expectations in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), the "Posttraumatic Expectations Scale" (PTES). In a cross-sectional study, 70 PTSD patients completed the PTES, the Posttraumatic Cognitions Inventory (PTCI), as well as measures of the severity of symptoms of PTSD and depression.

Efficacy of Augmentation of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy With Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation for Depression: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

Importance: Major depressive disorder (MDD) affects approximately 10% of the population globally. Approximately 20% to 30% of patients with MDD do not sufficiently respond to standard treatment. Therefore, there is a need to develop more effective treatment strategies.

Neuromodulation through brain stimulation-assisted cognitive training in patients with post-COVID-19 cognitive impairment (Neuromod-COV): study protocol for a PROBE phase IIb trial.

Introduction: A substantial number of patients diagnosed with COVID-19 experience long-term persistent symptoms. First evidence suggests that long-term symptoms develop largely independently of disease severity and include, among others, cognitive impairment. For these symptoms, there are currently no validated therapeutic approaches available.

Family involvement in psychotherapy for depression in children and adolescents: Systematic review and meta-analysis.

Purpose: Depressive disorders in children and adolescents have an enormous impact on their general quality of life. There is a clear need to effectively treat depression in this age group. Effects of psychotherapy can be enhanced by involving caregivers.

Inpatient psychotherapy for depression in a large routine clinical care sample: A Bayesian approach to examining clinical outcomes and predictors of change.

Background: A routinely collected dataset was analyzed (1) to determine the naturalistic effectiveness of inpatient psychotherapy for depression in routine psychotherapeutic care, and (2) to identify potential predictors of change.

Methods: In a sample of 22,681 inpatients with depression, pre-post and pre-follow-up effect sizes were computed for various outcome variables. To build a probabilistic model of predictors of change, an independent component analysis generated components from demographic and clinical data, and Bayesian EFA extracted factors from the available pre-test, post-test and follow-up questionnaires in a subsample (N = 6377).

Out of sight, out of mind? High discrepancy between observer- and patient-reported outcome after routine inpatient treatment for depression.

Background: Divergent outcomes of treatment for depression occur regularly, but often go undetected by clinical judgment alone. To date, no comprehensive studies are available on what the detection rate of divergent outcomes is in routine care.

Method: We analyzed a large (N = 20,882) database of clinician-rated and patient-reported outcomes from routine inpatient treatment for depression.

EffECTively Treating Depression: A Pilot Study Examining Manualized Group CBT as Follow-Up Treatment After ECT.

There is an urgent need for effective follow-up treatments after acute electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in depressed patients. Preliminary evidence suggests psychotherapeutic interventions to be a feasible and efficacious follow-up treatment. However, there is a need for research on the long-term usefulness of such psychotherapeutic offers in a naturalistic setting that is more representative of routine clinical practice.

Negative Effects of a Multimodal Inpatient CBASP Program: Rate of Occurrence and Their Impact on Treatment Outcome in Chronic and Treatment-Resistant Depression.

A growing number of studies indicate that the Cognitive Behavioral Analysis System of Psychotherapy (CBASP) is effective in treating chronic depression. However, there is no systematic research into possible negative effects. Therefore, the objectives of the study were to investigate the rate of occurrence of negative effects of an inpatient CBASP program and their impact on treatment response.

Cognitive Change and Relaxation as Key Mechanisms of Treatment Outcome in Chronic Pain: Evidence From Routine Care.

Despite effective treatment approaches within the cognitive behavioral framework general treatment effects for chronic pain are rather small to very small. Translation from efficacy trials to naturalistic settings is questionable. There is an urgent need to improve the effectiveness of well-established treatments, such as cognitive-behavior therapy (CBT) and the investigation of mechanisms of change is a promising opportunity.

Does trauma-focused psychotherapy change the brain? A systematic review of neural correlates of therapeutic gains in PTSD.

Background: Meta-analytic results indicate that posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is associated with hypoactivation of the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), hyperactivation of the amygdala, and volume reductions of the hippocampus. Effective psychotherapeutic treatments were hypothesized to normalize these neural patterns via upregulation of prefrontal structures, which in turn downregulate limbic regions.

Objective: To gain a sound understanding of the effects of successful psychotherapy on the brain, neural changes from pre- to post-treatment in PTSD patients will be aggregated.