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Predicting and Moderating the Response to the Unified Protocol: Do Baseline Personality and Affective Profiles Matter?

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Abstract

Background

Neuroticism (N), extraversion (E), and negative/positive affect (NA/PA) are personality/affective characteristics highly related to the etiology and maintenance of emotional disorders (EDs). This study aims at exploring the moderating role of baseline personality/ and affectivity profiles in the response to a transdiagnostic psychological treatment for EDs.

Methods

Outcomes were N, E, NA, PA, depression, and anxiety. These were assessed at baseline, post-treatment, and 3-month follow-up in 157 participants with EDs who received the Unified Protocol (UP) in group format in the Spanish Health System. A linear mixed model analysis was carried out to investigate different recovery trajectories as a function of baseline personality and affective profiles

Results

Significant changes occurred in all variables after the UP. Medium and high baseline scores in N and NA moderate the largest changes on N, NA and E while lower baseline scores in PA and E moderate the largest changes on E and PA. Changes over time on depression and anxiety symptoms were not predicted from personality/affect baseline scores.

Conclusion

The study results support the short-medium term utility of the UP to address all study outcomes. Moreover, personalizing interventions according to baseline personality/affect might be a sensible strategy to enhance the UP effectiveness. Trial registration number NCT03064477 (March 10, 2017).

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Data Availability

The datasets generated during and/or analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank all collaborating centers, all healthcare professionals, and all volunteers and participants that made this study possible.

Funding

Funding

The study was funded by Gobierno de Aragón and cofinanced by FEDER 2014-2020 "Construyendo Europa desde Aragón" Grant No: (S31_20D), Funding for the study was provided by the PI17/00320 project integrated in Plan Estatal de I+D+I 2013-2016 and co-funded by the “ISCIII-Subdirección General de Evaluación y Fomento de la investigación del Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional (FEDER). Otra manera de hacer Europa Grant No: (PI17/00320)

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Facultad de Ciencias Sociales y Humanas, Departamento de Psicología y Sociología, Universidad de Zaragoza, C/ Atarazanas, 4, 44003, Teruel, España

    J. Osma & O. Peris-Baquero

  2. Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de Aragón, Zaragoza, Spain

    J. Osma & O. Peris-Baquero

  3. Universitat Jaume I, Castellón, Spain

    C. Suso-Ribera

  4. University of Kentucky (EEUU), Kentucky, USA

    S. Sauer-Zavala

  5. Center for Anxiety and Related Disorders, Boston University, Boston, USA

    D. H. Barlow

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Correspondence to J. Osma.

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Osma, J., Peris-Baquero, O., Suso-Ribera, C. et al. Predicting and Moderating the Response to the Unified Protocol: Do Baseline Personality and Affective Profiles Matter?. Cogn Ther Res 45, 817–830 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10608-021-10208-6

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