NCT03196544

Novel Behavioral Intervention to Enhance Social Connections in Anxiety and Depression

Completed NA Last updated 28 August 2020

What this trial tests

NA trial testing Social Approach Training (5 sessions) in Anxiety Disorders and Symptoms in 75 participants. Completed in 1 April 2020.

Timeline

3 April 2018

Primary endpoint
8 October 2019

1 April 2020

Quick facts

Lead sponsor	University of California, San Diego
Phase	NA
Status	Completed
Study type	INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation	randomized
Design	parallel
Masking	single
Primary purpose	treatment
Enrollment	75
Start date	3 April 2018
Primary completion	8 October 2019
Estimated completion	1 April 2020
Sites	1 location across United States

Drugs / interventions tested

• Social Approach Training (5 sessions)
• Social Approach Training (10 sessions)

Conditions studied

• Anxiety Disorders and Symptoms — all drugs for Anxiety Disorders and Symptoms →
• Depression — all drugs for Depression →

Sponsor

University of California, San Diego

Who can join

Adults 18 to 55, any sex, with Anxiety Disorders and Symptoms or Depression. Patients with the condition only — healthy volunteers not accepted.

Sponsor's own description

The overall goal of this project is to develop a novel transdiagnostic behavioral treatment -- social approach training -- intended to enhance positive social connections in individuals with elevated anxiety and/or depression. Social relationship impairments are pervasive and debilitating consequences of anxiety and depression. Existing treatments have some beneficial impact on social functioning; however, many people continue to have few and/or poor quality relationships following treatment, even after experiencing symptom relief. This study will evaluate the effects of social approach training on the brain systems that have been shown to be important for establishing positive connections with others. Approximately 60 individuals (ages 18-55) seeking treatment for anxiety or depression will participate in this study. Participants will be randomly assigned with equal probability to one of two versions of social approach training (5 or 10 sessions) or a waitlist (assessment only) control group. Participants will be assessed at baseline and post-treatment and compared on measures assessing brain responses to social reward (primary outcome), as well as physiological, behavioral, and emotional responses to social reward (secondary outcomes). It is hypothesized that participants assigned to social approach training will display greater increases from pre- to post-treatment in activity in brain systems that regulate the processing of social reward (e.g., striatum) relative to participants in the control group. This study will also determine whether the 5- vs. 10-session versions of the treatment program result in meaningful differences, compared to each other, in how the brain responds to social reward.

Publications & conference data

8 peer-reviewed publications reference this trial (live from Europe PMC):

1. Amplification of Positivity Treatment for Anxiety and Depression: A Randomized Experimental Therapeutics Trial Targeting Social Reward Sensitivity to Enhance Social Connectedness.
   Taylor CT, Stein MB, Simmons AN, He F, et al · · 2024 · cited 30× · PMID 37607657 · DOI 10.1016/j.biopsych.2023.07.024
2. Beyond Positive Affect: Discrete Positive Emotions Differentiate Major Depression from Social Anxiety Disorder.
   Chin AA, Sweet AM, Taylor CT. · · 2023 · cited 4× · PMID 37179573 · DOI 10.1007/s10608-023-10355-y
3. Validation of the Approach-Avoidance Temperament Questionnaire in Individuals with Anxiety and Depression.
   Rassaby M, Rogers JM, Taylor CT. · · 2025 · cited 3× · PMID 38776435 · DOI 10.1080/00223891.2024.2350466
4. Application of an egocentric social network approach to examine changes in social connections following treatment for anxiety and depression: A novel measurement tool for clinical trials research?
   Rassaby M, Shakya HB, Fowler JH, Oveis C, et al · · 2024 · cited 2× · PMID 38696938 · DOI 10.1016/j.socscimed.2024.116914
5. Network analyses of discrete emotions and social connectedness indicators in anxiety and depressive disorders.
   Shriver RC, Rassaby M, Collins AC, Taylor CT. · · 2026 · PMID 42027952 · DOI 10.1016/j.xjmad.2026.100177
6. Differential associations of childhood abuse and neglect with neural responses to social reward and punishment in adults with anxiety or depression.
   Spaulding IG, Stein MB, Taylor CT. · · 2026 · PMID 41651812 · DOI 10.1038/s41398-026-03881-2
7. The power of positivity: Exploring affective and social processes of change throughout a positive valence treatment for anxiety or depression.
   Rassaby M, Adams SN, Stein MB, Taylor CT. · · 2025 · PMID 40988653 · DOI 10.1016/j.xjmad.2025.100146
8. Amplification of positivity for depression and anxiety: Neural prediction of treatment response.
   Kryza-Lacombe M, Spaulding I, Ku CK, Pearson N, et al · · 2024 · PMID 38714105 · DOI 10.1016/j.brat.2024.104545