A randomised controlled pilot study of Experience Focused Counselling with voice hearers

Schnackenberg, Joachim, Fleming, Mick and Martin, Colin R. (2016) A randomised controlled pilot study of Experience Focused Counselling with voice hearers. Psychosis, 9 (1). pp. 12-24. ISSN 1752-2439

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Abstract

Background: There is a need for improved psychosocial interventions for distressed voice hearers. Aims: To evaluate a novel approach to hearing voices: Experience Focussed Counselling (EFC) aka Making Sense of Voices. Study design and methods: 12 voice hearers were randomly assigned to a 44-week EFC or Treatment As Usual intervention as part of a pilot study design. Results: At the end of intervention EFC showed clinically large treatment effect improvements on the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale – Expanded Version psychotic symptoms (Cohen’s d=1.6) and overall psychopathology domains (d=1.3), and the Psychotic Symptom Rating Scales voices (d=1) and delusions (aka non-shared reality) (d=1) scales. EFC voice hearers also felt more able to do first trauma disclosures (n=4) than TAU group voice hearers (n=1). Discussion: EFC improvements may have been related to the focus on reducing voices related distress. EFC holds some promise as a safe and effective intervention for voice hearers, with possible improvements in general psychopathology, psychosis, voices, and non-shared reality (aka delusions) related distress. This will need replicating in more powerful studies.

Item Type:	Article
Keywords:	experience focused counselling, hearing voices, making sense of voices, psychosis, randomised controlled trial, schizophrenia
Divisions:	?? BucksNewUniversity ??
Depositing User:	Professor Colin Martin
Date Deposited:	05 Apr 2017 15:44
Last Modified:	11 Dec 2017 19:26
URI:	https://bnu.repository.guildhe.ac.uk/id/eprint/14489

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