The Credibility and Acceptability of Befriending as a Control Therapy in a Randomized Controlled Trial of Cognitive Behaviour Therapy for Acute First Episode Psychosis
Abstract
There is increasing evidence that cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is efficacious in treating psychosis. However, very little attention has been paid to the nature of the control treatments used in studies of this. Befriending has been used as a control treatment in several randomized control trials (RCTs) of CBT for psychosis as it is simple to learn and administer. The aim of the present study was to examine whether Befriending controlled for important non-specific aspects of therapy when compared to CBT in a RCT for acute first episode psychosis (FEP). These non-specific factors included time in, expectancy created by, and acceptability of therapy. Expectations and enjoyment of therapy were measured by questionnaire. Time in therapy and the number of drop-outs were also recorded. Results showed that Befriending was comparable to CBT on measures of expectancy, enjoyment of therapy and drop-out rate, but significantly different with regard to time in therapy. This suggests that Befriending is a credible and acceptable control therapy for FEP with modification to increase time in therapy sessions. Methodological issues are raised, and suggestions for future research are made regarding control treatments.
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The use of an active control allows for the control of a number of factors including therapist contact, the expectancy of the client, a therapeutic alliance, and replication of intervention time.
“The use of an active control allows for the control of a number of factors including therapist contact, the expectancy of the client, a therapeutic alliance, and replication of intervention time (Bendall et al., 2006).”
From Can acceptance and commitment therapy facilitate psychological adjustment after a severe traumatic brain injury? A pilot randomized controlled trial. (2020) · cites this paper as Bendall et al., 2006
Befriending has been used as a control treatment in schizophrenia research.
“and as a control treatment in schizophrenia research (Bendall et al., 2006).”
From Can acceptance and commitment therapy facilitate psychological adjustment after a severe traumatic brain injury? A pilot randomized controlled trial. (2020) · cites this paper as Bendall et al., 2006
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“The use of an active control allows for the control of a number of factors including therapist contact, the expectancy of the client, a therapeutic alliance, and replication of intervention time (Bendall et al., 2006).”
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- Authors
- Bendall, S., Jackson, H. J., Killackey, E., Allott, K., Johnson, T., Harrigan, S., Gleeson, J., & McGorry, P. D.
- Affiliations
- The University of Melbourne (AU)
- Venue
- Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy
- Publisher
- Cambridge University Press (CUP)
- Published
- 2006-03-27
- Volume
- 34
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 277-291
- ISSN
- 1352-4658 (ISSN-L)
- 1469-1833
- OpenAlex
- W1979057116
- Cited by
- 48
- References
- 3
- Citations by year
- 2026: 2 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 1 · 2022: 4 · 2021: 3 · 2020: 3 · 2019: 2 · 2018: 4 · 2017: 5 · 2016: 5 · 2015: 1 · 2014: 1 · 2013: 2 · 2012: 5
- FWCI
- 0.43
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy (publishedVersion)
- Research Bank (Australian Catholic University) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Schizophrenia research and treatment
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychotherapy Techniques and Applications
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychological Treatments and Assessments
- Keywords
- befriending, cognitive behavioral therapy, first-episode psychosis, acute psychosis, treatment discontinuation, placebo comparison
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