Emotion regulation skills training as an adjunctive treatment to narrative exposure therapy for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in refugees: a pilot randomized controlled trial.

Background

Responses to evidence-based interventions for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in refugees vary considerably. Emotion regulation difficulties are associated with greater PTSD severity in refugees and thus represent a potential treatment target.

Objective

This study aimed to test the efficacy of Skills Training in Affective and Interpersonal Regulation for Refugees (STAIR-R) and Narrative Exposure Therapy (NET) or Supportive Problem-Solving (SPS) and NET. An exploratory aim was to examine relative efficacy in refugees with high and low levels of visa and family insecurity.

Methods

Seventy-one participants were randomly assigned to STAIR-R (6 sessions) + NET (7 sessions) or SPS (6 sessions) +NET (7 sessions). Assessments occurred at baseline, post-treatment, and 3-month follow-up, with additional self-report at mid-treatment. The primary outcome was clinician-assessed PTSD symptom severity (CAPS-5) and secondary outcomes included self-reported PTSD symptoms, depression symptoms, emotion regulation difficulties, difficulties in relationships and environmental quality of life.

Results

Intent-to-treat linear mixed models showed no significant between-group differences at mid-treatment, post-treatment, or follow-up. Both groups demonstrated significant improvements at 3-month follow-up in clinician-assessed (STAIR-R + NET, g = -1.41; SPS + NET, g = -1.54, p < .001) and self-reported (STAIR-R + NET, g = -0.49; SPS + NET, g = -0.44, p = .006) PTSD symptoms. Moderatorg analyses revealed that those with high insecurity (n = 16) obtained greater benefits in STAIR-R + NET from pre-treatment to follow-up on self-reported PTSD (g = 1.35), depression (g = 1.11), emotion regulation difficulties (g = 1.24), relationship difficulties (g = 1.12) and quality of life (g = -1.05).

Conclusions

While there were no overall between group-differences, refugees in both conditions showed reduced PTSD symptoms. There is preliminary evidence that those with high insecurity showed a better response to STAIR-R + NET than SPS + NET across several clinical outcomes, although the small sample size necessitates replication of these. These findings highlight the potential importance of tailored intervention approaches for refugees living in different environmental circumstances.