Is guided self-help as effective as face-to-face psychotherapy for depression and anxiety disorders? A systematic review and meta-analysis of comparative outcome studies

Background. Although guided self-help for depression and anxiety disorders has been examined in many studies, it is not clear whether it is equally effective as face-to-face treatments. Method. We conducted a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials in which the effects of guided self-help on depression and anxiety were compared directly with face-to-face psychotherapies for depression and anxiety disorders. A systematic search in bibliographical databases (PubMed, PsycINFO, EMBASE, Cochrane) resulted in 21 studies with 810 participants. Results. The overall effect size indicating the difference between guided self-help and face-to-face psychotherapy at post-test was d=-0.02, in favour of guided self-help. At follow-up (up to 1 year) no significant difference was found either. No significant difference was found between the drop-out rates in the two treatments formats. Conclusions. It seems safe to conclude that guided self-help and face-to-face treatments can have comparable effects. It is time to start thinking about implementation in routine care.

Donker, TVrije University Amsterdam (author)
van Straten, AVrije University Amsterdam (author)
Li, JChinese Academy of Science (author)
Andersson, GerhardKarolinska Institutet,Linköpings universitet,Avdelningen för klinisk och socialpsykologi (CS),Filosofiska fakulteten(Swepub:liu)geran87 (author)
Vrije University AmsterdamChinese Academy of Science (creator_code:org_t)

In:PSYCHOLOGICAL MEDICINE: Cambridge University Press40:12, s. 1943-19570033-29171469-8978

By the author/editor: Cuijpers, P; Donker, T; van Straten, A; Li, J; Andersson, Gerha ...

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