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TitleAcceptance and thought suppression as mechanisms of childhood obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
NameHarrison, Tara Lynn (author), Chu, Brian C (chair), Harris, Sandra (internal member), Wilson, G. Terence (internal member), Franklin, Martin (outside member), Rutgers University, Graduate School - New Brunswick,
Degree Date2011-01
Date Created2011
SubjectPsychology,
Obsessive-compulsive disorder in children,
Thought suppression,
Intrusive thoughts
DescriptionThis preliminary study experimentally examined the effects of two emotion regulation conditions (Thought Suppression and Acceptance) for intrusive thoughts on thought count frequency, subjective thought frequency, distress, and secondary outcome variables deemed important to youth intrusive thoughts in a heterogeneous clinical sample of 24 youth participants over three study time periods (baseline, experimental, return to baseline). A series of two-way, repeated ANOVAs revealed that there were no statistically significant differences between Thought Suppression and Acceptance from baseline to the experimental period or from the experimental to the return to baseline period in thought count frequency, subjective thought frequency, and distress, suggesting no counterproductive effects of youth thought suppression compared to acceptance. A series of one-way ANCOVAs revealed that there were no between-condition statistically significant differences in the levels of believability, urge to push away target thoughts, and willingness to continue thinking about target thoughts in the experimental or return to baseline periods. But, according to nonsignificant trends based on effect sizes, there was a medium to large effect size for greater decreases in distress from baseline to the experimental period in Acceptance than Thought Suppression, a large effect size for greater decreases in subjective thought frequency from the experimental to return to baseline period in Acceptance than Thought Suppression, and a large effect size for lower urges to push away target thoughts during the return to baseline period in Acceptance than Thought Suppression. If trends continue with larger samples, they could indicate a possible counterproductive effect of thought suppression and beneficial comparative impact of acceptance strategies in clinical youth. Study innovations, limitations, and recommendations for future paradigms with clinical youth are discussed.
NotePh.D.
NoteIncludes bibliographical references
NoteIncludes vita
Noteby Tara Lynn Harrison
Genretheses
Persistent URLhttp://hdl.rutgers.edu/1782.1/rucore10001600001.ETD.000057589
Languageeng
CollectionGraduate School - New Brunswick Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Organization NameRutgers, The State University of New Jersey
RightsThe author owns the copyright to this work.