Reisinger (1975) - Behavioural treatment of depression Flashcards
Aim
To find out whether a behavioural therapy (token economy) could be used to treat an inpatient with a diagnosis of depression.
Method
Case study.
Participants
A white female, 20 years old, who had been an inpatient for 6 years.
Procedure
The P was informed of how she could gain or be fined tokens. The value of each token (poker chip) was such that it could be traded in to purchase better sleeping facilities, to watch TV, to go on trips etc.
The P received a token from staff at the hospital when she was observed smiling (slight opening of the mouth and upward pointing lips). Social reinforcements were also given alongside the token such as ‘well done’.
A token was fined if the P cried (5-30 minutes).
The procedure lasted 20 weeks.
Measurements
Responses were recorded by staff 3x a day with each rating being a 2 hour maximum duration, arranged in conjunction with meal times.
Inter-rater reliability was used with more than one person recording responses.
Results
Baseline - P was reported smiling 0x a week, and crying 30x a week.
In the final week of treatment, the P was recorded as smiling 27x, and only crying 2x.
Follow-up at 14 months indicated that the patient had no recommendation for hospitalisation or further treatment.
Conclusion
The study would demonstrate that behavioural therapies can be very effective in the treatment of depression.
