NCT06200675

Understanding and Intervening With State Shame and Self-criticism

How Best to Understand and Intervene With State Shame and Self-criticism: A Randomised Clinical Trial Comparing Two Theoretical Perspectives

• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 348 (actual)
• Sponsor: University of Waterloo · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 18 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

The goal of this clinical trial is to compare the momentary effects of a one-session intervention (compassion-based, logic-based, or placebo control) on individuals with high or low trait self-criticism. The main questions it aims to answer are: After a momentary shame induction, will a compassion-based intervention and a logic-based intervention both be more beneficial than a placebo control condition in terms of therapeutic outcomes? Will the compassion-based intervention most effectively increase soothing affect, state self-compassion, and state self-reassurance? Will the effects of these two interventions (1) differ as a function of the individual's trait self-criticism, and (2) will this be due to differing indirect effects of the intervention on safe/soothed feelings based on trait self-criticism? Participants will first complete a set of baseline measures. Two to seven days later, they will be randomly assigned to one of three study conditions (i.e., compassion-based, logic-based, placebo control) after a brief shame induction. Participants will be asked to complete a set of questionnaires both before and after the shame induction as well as post-intervention. This research will help us understand how best to intervene with the shame and self-criticism.

Detailed description

This clinical trial consists of a two-part online study. Part 1 of this study collects baseline measures and screen out ineligible participants. Part 2 of this study will compare the momentary effects of a brief (10-15 minute) one-session online intervention (compassion-based, logic-based, or placebo control) after a shame induction. Participants assigned to the compassion-based intervention will be asked to engage in a self-compassion exercise, where they will be asked to write about and experience their feelings while connecting to their compassionate self. Participants assigned to the logic-based intervention will be asked to engage in a logic-based exercise that was adapted from a thought record often completed during CBT treatment. Participants assigned to the placebo control condition will be asked to listen to a portion of an audio recording of "The Hobbit." All conditions will involve audio recordings, and all participants will be asked to re-read what they wrote about their shame, engage in a writing task, and then re-read what they wrote during the intervention writing task.

Conditions

• Self-Criticism

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
OTHER	Compassion-based intervention	Participants assigned to this intervention will be asked to engage in one brief compassion-focused exercise, where they will be asked to be asked to connect to their inner compassionate self. They will be asked to stay connected to that feeling while rereading what they wrote about their feelings of shame and imagining it was someone else who wrote it. Participants will then be asked to write a compassionate response to themselves. Participants will then be asked to reread this response while remaining connected to their compassionate self.
OTHER	Logic-based intervention	Participants assigned to this intervention will be asked to engage in one brief (10-15 minute) online logic-based exercise that was adapted from a CBT thought record. Participants will be asked to reread what they wrote about their feelings of shame and chose a thought central to their shame to use for this exercise. Participants will be asked to generate evidence for and against their chosen thought, and then generate a more balanced thought. After the exercise, participants will be asked to reread their newly generated more balanced thought.
OTHER	Placebo control condition	Participants assigned to this intervention will be asked to listen to an audio recording of "The Hobbit" and then re-read what they wrote about their feelings of shame. They will then be asked to write a reflection about the thoughts and feelings arising from doing so. They will then be asked to re-read what they wrote in this reflection.

Timeline

• Start date: 2023-10-17
• Primary completion: 2023-12-31
• Completion: 2023-12-31
• First posted: 2024-01-11
• Last updated: 2024-05-08

Locations

1 site across 1 country: Canada