The Role of Expectations in the Development of Intrusive Memories: An Experimental Approach Using the Trauma Film Paradigm
Trial Snapshot
- Phase
- Not Applicable
- Status
- Completed
- Enrollment
- 90
- Locations
- 2
- Primary Endpoint
- Frequency and severity of intrusive memories: Daily intrusion diary
Study Overview
Brief Summary
In the experimental study, the well-established trauma film paradigm will be used to investigate the impact of expectations on the development of intrusive memories as a hallmark symptom of PTSD.
Detailed Description
The study aims to examine the influence of different expectations on the development of intrusive memories by using a well-established experimental paradigm - the trauma film paradigm. In healthy volunteers, intrusion-like symptoms are to be induced with an analogue stressor, i.e., aversive film clip footage (trauma film). After viewing this so-called trauma film, the expectations of intrusions during the following week are manipulated by assigning participants randomly to three different groups. In the first group, negative expectations are induced (experimental group 1), the second group is exposed to positive expectations (experimental group 2) and a third group does not face any kind of manipulation of their expectations (control group). Participants are asked to report occurring intrusions in a diary during the following week and are invited to a subsequent cued laboratory inquiry at follow-up.
Study Design
- Study Type
- Interventional
- Allocation
- Randomized
- Intervention Model
- Parallel
- Primary Purpose
- Basic Science
- Masking
- Triple (Participant, Investigator, Outcomes Assessor)
Eligibility Criteria
- Ages
- 18 Years to 65 Years (Adult, Older Adult)
- Sex
- All
- Accepts Healthy Volunteers
- Yes
Inclusion Criteria
- •healthy volunteers
- •fluent in German language
Exclusion Criteria
- •history of traumatic experiences (LEC-5)
- •presence of a mental disorder (SCID-I according to DSM-IV)
- •cut-off in depression screening (PHQ-9)
- •current suicidal thoughts/behavior or non-suicidal self-injury behavior (C-SSRS)
- •medical history of heart disease or epilepsy
- •history of fainting
- •work experience in the medical field (e.g., nurses, paramedics, etc.)
- •visual impairment
- •students of psychology and medicine
Outcomes
Primary Outcomes
Frequency and severity of intrusive memories: Daily intrusion diary
Time Frame: Record of any intrusive memories of the trauma film content for Days 1 to 7 after the experimental manipulation.
Participants are asked to complete a pen-and-paper diary 7 days in a row, reporting on intrusive memories in reference to the trauma film. They are asked to state the number of intrusions per day; each day of the diary is labeled and split into three sections (morning, afternoon, evening), and they are asked to mark in a box in the appropriate section when they experienced an intrusion. For each intrusion, they indicate the quality of the intrusion (image, thought or both), the intensity of and distress caused by the intrusion both on a scale ranging from 0 ("not at all") to 10 ("extremely"), the content of the intrusion, and the situation in which the intrusion occurred. Intrusive memory frequency across 7 days are calculated, whilst higher sum scores represent more intrusions. Severity of intrusions are calculated by combining the average score of the intensity and distress scale across all intrusions, whilst higher values indicate higher intensity/distress of reported intrusions.
Secondary Outcomes
- Distress caused by the trauma film: Impact of Event Scale-Revised (IES-R)(At the follow-up measurement (7 days after the experimental manipulation).)
- Laboratory assessment of intrusive memories: Intrusion Provocation Task (IPT)(At the follow-up measurement (7 days after the experimental manipulation).)