A Systematic Review of the Use of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy to Treat Adult Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

Behav Ther. 2023 Nov;54(6):1006-1019. doi: 10.1016/j.beth.2022.02.009. Epub 2023 Jun 2.ABSTRACTThe present review aims to critically evaluate available literature on the use of acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) to treat adult obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and to draw conclusions about using ACT to reduce OCD symptoms in adults with OCD. Databases (PsycINFO, PsycARTICLES, MEDLINE, and PubMed), Google Scholar, and article references were used to identify relevant studies through October 10, 2020. This review includes both peer-reviewed, published articles (n = 15) and unpublished theses and dissertations (n = 2) to increase the breadth of the review as suggested by PRISMA guidelines. Reviewed articles utilized ACT and at least one measure of OCD symptom severity. Information on methodological, measurement, statistical, and analytical characteristics of the included studies were extracted to determine the quality of the available studies and to inform the conclusions of this review. Seventeen studies (n = 17) with 336 participants from three countries were evaluated. The current evidence suggests that ACT can be used to reduce symptoms of OCD in adults. A conclusion supporting the use of ACT to reduce OCD symptoms can be made because of several strengths within this body of literature (e.g., use of validated OCD symptom measures, inclusion of treatment manuals, use of multiple assessment points, etc.). However, because a majority of the included studies are quasi-exp...
Source: Behavior Therapy - Category: Psychiatry & Psychology Authors: Source Type: research