Case Study of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy and Functional Analysis for Emetophobia

This case study illustrates a clinical behavior analytic intervention for a female client with emetophobia, the fear of vomiting. Clinical behavior analysis is a recently developing branch of empirically supported psychotherapy, derived from behavior analysis. This case study presents modified case formulations and changed intervention strategies according to the results of repeated measuring. The intervention was six sessions and three gradual follow-up sessions; the effect of the intervention was monitored by a single-case design. The intervention strategies were changed from symptom-focused interventions, which are based on exposure, to value-focused gradual follow-up sessions. The client’s phobia and depression were alleviated through the intervention and gradual follow-up phases. Moreover, her value-based activities increased through the gradual follow-up phase. The Reliable Change Indexes (RCIs) were calculated to evaluate changes between the intervention and follow-up phases. There were large and clinically significant decreases on measures. The results highlight the utility of repeated measuring and importance of a value-focused approach.

Section: Treatment Implications Of the Casementioning

confidence: 81%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Case Study of Clinical Behavior Analysis for a 20-Year-Old Client With Emetophobia

Mitamura

2019

“…Paulus and Norton (2016) have demonstrated that addressing anxious symptoms more generally while still including vomit-related exposure items is helpful to ameliorating Emetophobia. More recently, Bogusch, Moeller, and O'Brien (2018) also reported an effective course of therapy for Emetophobia without the use of explicit vomit cues. Thus, treatment of Emetophobia may benefit from a more transdiagnostic approach.…”

Section: Theoretical and Research Basis For Treatmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Transdiagnostic Approach to the Treatment of Emetophobia: A Single Case Study

Dargis

Burk

2018

The fear of vomiting (i.e., Emetophobia) causes substantial distress for affected individuals, and is associated with hypervigilance to somatic sensations, panic attacks, and behavioral avoidance. Interventions for Emetophobia have traditionally relied heavily on exposure to vomit, vomiting, and vomit-related cues, providing some challenges in identifying appropriate graded exposures for Emetophobia due to medical and hygiene concerns. Recent efforts have been made to treat psychopathology transdiagnostically; however, very few efforts have been made to reduce Emetophobia symptoms in such a fashion, without the explicit use of vomit-related exposures. The current case study describes the cognitive-behavioral, transdiagnostic treatment approach utilized to treat a young woman with Emetophobia. We report significant symptom reduction at the end of therapy, as well as at a 7-month follow-up. The current study provides further evidence that emetophobia can be effectively resolved utilizing transdiagnostic strategies and without direct exposure to vomit or vomit-like stimuli. Keywords specific phobia/phobia, cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT)

“…To date, a plethora of empirical support exists for both the efficacy and process of change in ACT as a unified treatment for a multitude of behavioral health concerns (Atkins et al, 2017; Bloy et al, 2011; Levin et al, 2012). ACT has also been investigated extensively using single-case methodology (e.g., Bogusch et al, 2018; Boynton-Wheeler, 2017), which allows for an in-depth examination of the process of change and trajectory of relevant variables throughout treatment. One way to contribute to this literature is to continue to extend an in-depth analysis of both therapeutic processes and outcomes of ACT using a within-subject experimental design, a paradigm commonly used in previous research (e.g., Hill et al, 2014; Knowlton et al, 2019).…”

Section: Theoretical and Research Basis For Treatmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Acceptance and Commitment Therapy as a Transdiagnostic Approach to Treatment of Behavioral Health Concerns: A Concurrent Multiple Baseline Design Across Participants

Spencer

Masuda

2020

The current study examined the effects of an individual acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) protocol in three young adults with topographically different, but functionally similar, behavioral health concerns. Using a concurrent multiple baseline design across participants ( N = 3), clinically relevant target behaviors were collected daily as primary outcome measures. In addition, weekly self-report assessment of potential process variables and an assessment package at pretreatment, midpoint, posttreatment, and 3-month follow-up were used to evaluate process and outcomes of treatment. Results provided tentative support for ACT’s efficacy, with effects being most pronounced in Participants 2 and 3 with slight improvements in clinically relevant target behaviors. This study adds to the literature concerning process-based approaches to treatment by highlighting how ACT can be tailored to the needs of individuals with diverse behavioral health concerns.