About
The objective of this clinical trial was to evaluate the efficacy of dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) compared with individual and group supportive therapy (IGST) for reducing suicide attempts, nonsuicidal self-injury, and overall self-harm among high-risk youths.
Outcomes
- Significant advantages were found for DBT on all primary outcomes after treatment:
- suicide attempts: 90% of youth receiving DBT vs 79% of youth receiving IGST made no suicide attempts
- nonsuicidal self-injury: 5y% of youth receiving DBT vs 40% of youth receiving IGST made no non-suicidal self-injuries
- Self-harm: 54% of youth receiving DBT vs 37% of youth receiving IGST did not harm themselves
- Rates of self-harm decreased through 1-year follow-up
- The advantage of DBT decreased, with no statistically significant between-group differences, from 6 to 12 months
- Treatment completion rates were higher for DBT (75.6%) than for IGST (55.2%), but pattern-mixture models indicated that this difference did not informatively affect outcomes
Citations
- Adrian, M., McCauley, E., Berk, M. S., Asarnow, J. R., Korslund, K., Avina, C., Gallop, R., & Linehan, M. M. (2019). Predictors and moderators of recurring self-harm in adolescents participating in a comparative treatment trial of psychological interventions. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, and Allied Disciplines, 60(10), 1123–1132. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.13099
- Berk, M., Adrian, M., McCauley, E., Asarnow, J., Avina, C., & Linehan, M. (2014). Conducting research on adolescent suicide attempters: Dilemmas and decisions. The Behavior Therapist, 37(3), 65–69. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4061763/
- McCauley, E., Berk, M. S., Asarnow, J. R., Adrian, M., Cohen, J., Korslund, K., Avina, C., Hughes, J., Harned, M., Gallop, R., & Linehan, M. M. (2018). Efficacy of dialectical behavior therapy for adolescents at high risk for suicide: A randomized clinical trial. JAMA Psychiatry, 75(8), 777. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2018.1109
