Attitudes and preferences towards self-help treatments for depression in comparison to psychotherapy and antidepressant medication
Open accessAbstract
Background: Self-help is an effective treatment for depression. Less is known, however, about how acceptable people find different self-help treatments for depression. Aims: To investigate preferences and attitudes toward different self-help treatments for depression in comparison to psychotherapy and antidepressants. Method:N = 536 people who were not actively seeking treatment for depression were randomly assigned to read about one of five treatment options (bibliotherapy, Internet-based self-help, guided self-help, antidepressants, or psychotherapy) before rating how acceptable they found the treatment. Participants also ranked the treatments in order of preference. Results: Psychotherapy and guided self-help were found to be the most acceptable and preferred treatment options. Antidepressants and bibliotherapy were found to be the least acceptable treatments, with antidepressants rated as the most likely to have side effects. Preference data reflected the above findings – psychotherapy and guided self-help were the most preferred treatment options. Conclusions: The findings highlight differences in attitudes and preferences between guided and unguided self-help interventions; and between self-help interventions and psychotherapy. Future research should focus on understanding why unguided self-help interventions are deemed to be less acceptable than guided self-help interventions for treating depression.
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Stigma specific to depression seems to be lowest when a combination of life stress, chemical imbalances and genetic abnormalities is endorsed rather than a single biological cause.
“Stigma specific to depression seems to be lowest when a combination of life stress, chemical imbalances and genetic abnormalities is endorsed rather than a single biological cause. 359”
From Time for united action on depression: a Lancet–World Psychiatric Association Commission (2022) · cites this paper as [359]
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- Authors
- Hanson, K., Webb, T. L., Sheeran, P., & Turpin, G.
- Affiliations
- Sheffield Hallam University (GB)
- University of Sheffield (GB)
- University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (US)
- Corresponding author
- Hanson, Katie
- ORCID
- Webb, Thomas L.
- Venue
- Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy
- Publisher
- Cambridge University Press (CUP)
- Published
- 2015-02-20
- Volume
- 44
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 129-139
- ISSN
- 1352-4658 (ISSN-L)
- 1469-1833
- OpenAlex
- W2103495254
- Cited by
- 41
- References
- 38
- Citations by year
- 2026: 2 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 5 · 2023: 4 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 3 · 2020: 6 · 2019: 1 · 2018: 1 · 2017: 3 · 2016: 1 · 2015: 2
- FWCI
- 3.78
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- doi.org
- Locations
- Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- White Rose Research Online (University of Leeds, The University of Sheffield, University of York) (acceptedVersion)
- SHURA (Sheffield Hallam University Research Archive) (Sheffield Hallam University) (acceptedVersion)
- Carolina Digital Repository (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill) (submittedVersion)
- UNC Libraries
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Applied Psychology › Digital Mental Health Interventions
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Mental Health Treatment and Access
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes
- Keywords
- depression, self-help treatment, treatment preferences, treatment acceptability, psychotherapy, antidepressants, bibliotherapy, online self-help, guided self-help, adverse effects
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Adult, Aged, Antidepressive Agents, Bibliotherapy, Depression, Major Depressive Disorder, Female, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Patient Acceptance of Health Care, Psychiatric Status Rating Scales, Psychotherapy, Quality of Life, Self Care, Treatment Outcome, Internet
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