Bridging Affect Consciousness, Mentalization and Trauma- Exploring an Integrative Treatment Approach for Personality Disorder (PD).

Summary

Study background: Specialized Group Outpatient Clinic within specialist mental health services, tailoring two year group treatment programmes for severe Avoidant PD (AvPD) and Borderline PD (BPD) with Affect Consciousness (AC) targeting specific areas of emotional dysfunction. Aims: Our main hypothesis, adding AC to Mentalization- based treatment (MBT) to expand the breadth and depth of therapeutically productive work on affect, will aim to examine health indicators, processes and mechanisms of change in depth. The study will extracts preliminary data after 5 years and 10 years to investigate clinical change, variation and outcome during MBT for PD employing AC as add on to MBT. The study has a randomized controlled trail design, with MBT with or without AC as add-on. The RCT is grounded on original literature on Affect Theory, as a framework for understanding patient functioning, and MBT, framing the therapy.Implications: AC methodology as add on can lead to more tailored treatment programmes, service planning, allocation of resources, guidelines, ACI certification and method development for PDs.

Conditions

• Personality Disorder, Borderline
• Personality Trait
• Personality Disorder
• Personality Type
• Personality Disorder, Avoidant
• Affect Consciousness
• Mentalization
• Reflective Functioning
• PTSD
• PTSD - Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
• PTSD and Trauma-related Symptoms

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Experimental group: AC-group therapy intervention.

The aim is to increase Affect consciousness and Affect integration with 15 two hour group session interventions. Interview for 4 central affect categories to become familiar with the questions/techniques is used pre and post group. Group meeting 1 presents the AC affect theory, 13 affect categories and the group program related to each individual group meeting. Group meetings 2-14 lectures on the current affect category, bodily attentional signals and inner mood/mental content, exploration of impact, handling and the signal function of emotions and non-verbal body language and verbal descriptions related to the desire and ability to express oneself. Group meeting 15 is evaluation, clarification, repetition and closure of the group. "On arrival" focus on disturbances (internal and external) for each participant and performance of four body awareness exercises is used. Therapeutic writings and listening to a piece of music shared by the participants in rotation are methods i

BEHAVIORAL

Control group 1: Body Awareness Group.

The aim is to connect with and become more confident about the body experiences, needs and feelings, to gain an increased understanding of oneself. The Group consists of 15 group sessions. Group meeting 1 Introduces Body Awareness Therapy, group structure and content and focus on experiences and expectations. The practice of slow, simple movements for the whole body in a standing position, introduction of The Autonomous Compass model, giving an opportunity to figure out where to place themselves in the compass in the moment, exercise stimulating the feet and a relaxation exercise. Group meetings 2-14 focuses on a topic as grounding, balance, breathe, play, posture due to habitual positions, body language and emotions, self-compassion and boundaries, explored through experience by using various physical exercises, sharing body experiences and psychoeducation. Session 15 contains summary, evaluation and repetition.Reflection on the previous session and sharing homework is included.

BEHAVIORAL

Control group 2: Art Psychotherapy group.

The aim is to keep an open "non-directive" psychodynamic and analytical approach to explore, discover and feel ownership of creativity as a form of expression. The group consists of 15 group sessions, where session 1-4 is setting the framework by presenting art mediums to be used collectively, creating security, a sense of community and solidarity sharing common challenges. Each individual is free to choose the motive and form of expression, with a high level of sharing and learning. Creative experiences made together on the use of art materials to convey the inner world, become the starting point for further creative exploration on a individual level with their inner selves in a self-developing therapeutic process. Session 1: Introduction to projection and how to read oneself into an object by using figures and sandplay. Sessions 2 - 4: How one can transfer, animate, or create personal expressions using collage, acrylic painting and clay.Groups 5-15 allows freedom to choo

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Oslo University Hospital

  collaborator OTHER

• University of Oslo

  collaborator OTHER

• University College, London

  collaborator OTHER

• University of Stavanger

  collaborator OTHER

• Aalborg University

  collaborator OTHER

• Helse Stavanger HF

  lead OTHER_GOV

Principal Investigators

• Ole Andrè Solbakken, Scientific Director/prof/PhD · Section of Clinical Psychology at the Department of Psychology (PSI), Institute of Affect Theory and Psychotherapy group (IATP)The University of Oslo (UIO). Norway..

• Inge Joa, PI/Associate professor/PhD · The Regional Network for Clinical Psychosis Research (Psyk Nett Vest), the Western Norway Regional Health Authority, Stavanger University Hospital (SUS).

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

SINGLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

20 Years

Max Age

40 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2025-05-19

Primary Completion

2029-05-19

Completion

2035-04-19

Countries

• Norway

Study Locations