Journal
PSYCHOLOGY AND PSYCHOTHERAPY-THEORY RESEARCH AND PRACTICE
Volume 94, Issue 2, Pages 266-288Publisher
WILEY
DOI: 10.1111/papt.12307
Keywords
anhedonia; behavioural activation; adolescents; depression; qualitative
Categories
Funding
- Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC)
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Qualitative study on treatment-seeking adolescents with depression found that specific Brief Behavioural Activation strategies and more generic therapeutic techniques were effective in treating anhedonia. Barriers to engagement included motivational anhedonia, fatigue, and academic demands.
Objectives Anhedonia, the loss of interest and pleasure, is a core symptom of depression and is associated with deficits in reward processing. Behavioural Activation for depression may address this symptom due to its focus on identifying and increasing intrinsically rewarding activities. Design This was a qualitative study employing reflexive thematic analysis (TA). Methods Participants were eight treatment-seeking adolescents with a recent primary diagnosis of depression who had received eight sessions of Brief Behavioural Activation. Qualitative semi-structured interviews were conducted after treatment was completed. Results Three main themes emerged: (1) connecting, reviewing, and taking action: 'focus on getting better rather than what you're feeling'; (2) struggles, restrictors, and motivators: 'it seemed really unachievable'; and (3) feeling, acting, or seeing things differently: 'looking forwards in a more healthy way'. Conclusions Both specific Brief Behavioural Activation strategies (e.g., connecting with values) and more generic therapeutic strategies (e.g., self-monitoring) may be helpful in treating the symptom of anhedonia in adolescent depression. Motivational aspects of anhedonia, as well as anxiety, fatigue, and academic pressures act as potential barriers to recovery. This highlights the need for psychological treatments for adolescent depression to include explicit and targeted strategies to enhance motivation. Practitioner points Young people reported that specific Brief Behavioural Activation strategies (e.g., connecting with values) and more generic therapeutic techniques (e.g., self-monitoring) had a role in treating anhedonia. Barriers to engaging in Brief BA included: motivational anhedonia, fatigue, and academic demands.
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