Compassion-based family program for adolescents with depression or anxiety

Compassion-Based Family Intervention for Adolescents With Emotional Disorders and Their Parents: A Randomized Waitlist-Controlled Trial

This study tests a six-week compassion-based family program to see if it helps adolescents (ages 12–18) with depression or anxiety and their parents.

Quick facts

• Phase: NA
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 60 (estimated)
• Ages: 12 Years to 18 Years
• Sex: All
• Sponsor: Beijing HuiLongGuan Hospital (other)
• Locations: 1 site (Hefei, Anhui)
• Trial ID: NCT07138417 on ClinicalTrials.gov

What this trial studies

This is a randomized, waitlist-controlled trial enrolling 60 parent–adolescent dyads at the Fourth People's Hospital of Hefei. Dyads are randomly assigned to immediate intervention or a six-week waiting list, with the intervention delivered in six weekly 120-minute sessions plus daily home practice. Outcomes include self-report measures of symptoms, parenting stress, and family relationships, alongside physiological measures of parent–child synchrony using fNIRS and heart rate monitors. Assessments occur at baseline, post-intervention, and at 3- and 6-month follow-ups, with outcome assessors and data analysts blinded to allocation.

Who should consider this trial

Good fit: Adolescents aged 12–18 with moderate depressive or anxiety symptoms (HAMD-17 score 17–30 or HAMA score 18–29) and at least one parent willing to participate are ideal candidates.

Not a fit: Individuals with psychosis, bipolar disorder, severe neurological or physical disease, substance abuse history, or parents with active mental illness are unlikely to benefit or be eligible for this program.

Why it matters

Potential benefit: If successful, the program could reduce adolescent depression and anxiety symptoms, lower parenting stress, and improve family relationships and physiological emotional synchrony.

How similar studies have performed: Compassion-focused and family-based interventions have shown benefit for adolescent anxiety and depression in prior work, but combining a family compassion program with fNIRS and heart-rate synchrony measures is relatively novel.

Eligibility criteria

Inclusion Criteria:

* the adolescent is aged 12-18 years
* for the adolescent, required scores at enrollment: at least one of the following criteria is met (i) 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD-17) (Hamilton, 1960) total score ≥17 and ≤30, (ii) Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale (HAMA) (Hamilton, 1959) total score ≥18 and ≤29; and in addition, the item 3 score of HAMD-17 (suicide) must be ≤2
* at least one parent is willing to participate
* the adolescent has normal auditory and visual perception abilities and intellectual level
* the participating parent has normal reading and writing ability
* the adolescent has no history of manic episodes

Exclusion Criteria:

* the adolescent presents with psychotic symptoms, bipolar disorder, or schizophrenia
* the parent suffers from a mental illness or psychological disorder
* the adolescent or their parent has a history of substance abuse
* the adolescent or their parent has a severe neurological disorder or major physical disease
* the adolescent or their parent is assessed as having high suicide risk

Where this trial is running

Hefei, Anhui

• Hefei Fourth People's Hospital (Anhui Mental Health Center; Affiliated Psychological Hospital of Anhui Medical University) — Hefei, Anhui, China (RECRUITING)

Study contacts

• Principal investigator: Dongmei Wang, Ph.D — Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Science
• Study coordinator: Dongmei Wang, Ph.D

Conditions: Emotional Disorder, Emotional disorder, adolescents, compassion, parents