NCT07048756: JM2019a

Psychotherapeutic Imagery Techniques

Completed NA Last updated 20 August 2025

What this trial tests

NA trial testing Imagery Rescripting in Fear of Failure in 220 participants. Completed in 1 June 2022.

Timeline

1 June 2020

Primary endpoint
1 June 2022

1 June 2022

Quick facts

Lead sponsor	University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Warsaw
Phase	NA
Status	Completed
Study type	INTERVENTIONAL
Allocation	randomized
Design	parallel
Masking	single
Primary purpose	basic science
Enrollment	220
Start date	1 June 2020
Primary completion	1 June 2022
Estimated completion	1 June 2022
Sites	1 location across Poland

Drugs / interventions tested

• Imagery Rescripting
• Imagery Exposure
• Imagery Rescripting with Disruption of Reconsolidation
• Compassion-Focused Therapy Imagery Rescripting

Conditions studied

• Fear of Failure — all drugs for Fear of Failure →

Sponsor

University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Warsaw

Who can join

Adults 18 to 35, any sex, with Fear of Failure. Patients with the condition only — healthy volunteers not accepted.

Sponsor's own description

This randomized controlled trial (RCT) examines the efficacy of Imagery Exposure (IE), Imagery Rescripting (ImRs), and Compassion-Focused Therapy (CFT) in individuals with a high fear of failure. Participants (N=220) were randomly assigned to IE, ImRs, ImRs with a 10-minute break (ImRs-DSR), or CFT-based Imagery Rescripting (CFT\_ImRs). Due to funding constraints, the CFT\_ImRs group included a reduced sample (N=40, targeting 30 completers).

The two-week intervention consists of four structured imagery sessions. IE involves exposure to criticism-related memories without modification. In the ImRs group memory reactivation to criticism-related memories is followed by positive reappraisal. ImRs-DSR introduces a 10-minute delay before reappraisal to enhance memory updating. CFT\_ImRs incorporates Compassion-Focused Therapy (CFT) principles into reappraisal, emphasizing self-compassion.

Primary outcomes include skin conductance level (SCL) and subjective emotional responses to criticism-related (and control) memories, changes in fear of failure and dysfunctional beliefs. All these variables are assessed pre-treatment, post-treatment, and at 3- and 6-month follow-ups. Results will be analyzed separately for:

IE vs. ImRs (rescripting vs. exposure and physiological predictors), ImRs vs. ImRs-DSR (memory reconsolidation effects), IE vs. CFT\_ImRs (CFT vs. exposure efficacy).

Publications & conference data

1 peer-reviewed publication reference this trial (live from Europe PMC):

1. Imagine yourself as a little girl…-efficacy and psychophysiology of imagery techniques targeting adverse autobiographical childhood experiences- multi-arm randomised controlled trial.
   Bączek J, Karkosz S, Pietruch M, Szymański R, et al · · 2025 · PMID 41625469 · DOI 10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1710963