Psychological Treatment for Adolescents With Self-injury Within Intensive Mental Health Outpatient Services: Randomized Controlled Pilot Trial

Summary

The overarching aim of this study is to develop and evaluate a new blended treatment format, which combines face-to-face and digital treatment components, for Emotion Regulation Individual Therapy for Adolescents (ERITA). This brief, transdiagnostic, and blended treatment targeting nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) - referred to as blended ERITA - will be specifically designed for adolescents with NSSI and low levels of functioning within intensive outpatient psychiatric services. The specific purpose of this pilot trial is to investigate feasibility in preparation for a larger trial.

Conditions

• Nonsuicidal Self Injury
• Nonsuicidal Self-Injury
• Self-Harm

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Blended ERITA

Blended ERITA is an acceptance-based behavioral therapy. The goal of ERITA is to reduce self-injury through learning and using other ways to regulate emotions. ERITA includes both an adolescent treatment and a separate parent course. The adolescent treatment includes skills training in emotional awareness, impulse control, emotional acceptance, emotional willingness, emotional modulation effectiveness and flexibility, validation, and valued direction. The parent course includes skills training in emotional awareness, validation, self-validation, and behavioral activation. The adolescent treatment is 11 modules, and the parent course is six. The modules include text, videos, and audio resources. The family and therapist decide on how to combine sessions with digital material based on preferences and needs.

BEHAVIORAL

Treatment as Usual (TAU)

Treatment as usual (TAU) will constitute treatment for NSSI according to local clinical guidelines.

OTHER

Concomitant care

Participants are free to receive concomitant care (counselling or medication) in addition to self-injury treatment according to their needs during the trial.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Region Stockholm

  collaborator OTHER_GOV

• Karolinska Institutet

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Olivia Ojala, PhD · Karolinska Institutet

• Johan Bjureberg, PhD · Karolinska Institutet

Study Design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

SINGLE

Model

PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age

12 Years

Max Age

17 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2026-09-30

Primary Completion

2028-03-31

Completion

2028-06-30

Countries

• Sweden

Study Locations