Comparing the effectiveness of acceptance-based behavior therapy to applied relaxation on worry and generalized anxiety disorder symptoms

Document Type : Research Paper

Author

Assistant professor of clinical psychology, Kashan University of Medical Sciences

Abstract

Introduction: Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is associated with a diminished quality of life and co morbidity with other anxiety and mood disorders. Acceptance-based behavior therapy (ABBT) is a new treatment that introduced for treatment of GAD. The current study compared ABBT to Applied Relaxation (AR) -the most utilized psychological therapy for GAD.
Materials and Methods: Thirty two women with GAD who were referred from psychiatrics offices in Isfahan city were recruited to participate in the study. They were then administered the SCID/CV.  Twenty four subjects who met the criteria for GAD were assigned to two groups (ABBT and AR) randomly. The groups received similar medication. The ABBT and AR participated in 12 weekly therapy sessions. The instruments used in the study at pre and post test included the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 item scale (GAD-7) and Penn State Worry Questionnaire (PSWQ). The data were analyzed using the multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA).
Results: No significant differences were found between ABBT and AR groups in anxiety symptoms and worry (P>0.05).
Conclusion: Overall, based on the findings of this study, one can conclude that the acceptance-based behavior therapy does not seem to be different from the applied relaxation therapy for treatment of generalized anxiety disorder. 

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Journal of Fundamentals of Mental Health
Volume 17, Issue 1 - Serial Number 1
January and February 2015
Pages 26-30

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