Self-system therapy for distress associated with persistent low back pain: A randomized clinical trial.
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2016-07
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OBJECTIVE: Persistent low back pain (PLBP) is associated with vulnerability to depression. PLBP frequently requires major changes in occupation and lifestyle, which can lead to a sense of failing to attain one's personal goals (self-discrepancy). METHOD: We conducted a clinical trial to examine the efficacy of self-system therapy (SST), a brief structured therapy for depression based on self-discrepancy theory. A total of 101 patients with PLBP and clinically significant depressive symptoms were randomized either to SST, pain education, or standard care. RESULTS: Patients receiving SST showed significantly greater improvement in depressive symptoms. Reduction in self-discrepancy predicted reduction in depressive symptoms only within the SST condition. CONCLUSIONS: Findings support the utility of SST for individuals facing persistent pain and associated depression.
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Waters, Sandra J, Timothy J Strauman, Daphne C McKee, Lisa C Campbell, Rebecca A Shelby, Kim E Dixon, Anne Marie Fras, Francis J Keefe, et al. (2016). Self-system therapy for distress associated with persistent low back pain: A randomized clinical trial. Psychother Res, 26(4). pp. 472–483. 10.1080/10503307.2015.1040485 Retrieved from https://hdl.handle.net/10161/13839.
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Timothy J. Strauman
Professor Strauman's research focuses on the psychological and neurobiological processes that enable self-regulation, conceptualized in terms of a cognitive/motivational perspective, as well as the relation between self-regulation and affect. Particular areas of emphasis include: (1) conceptualizing self-regulation in terms of brain/behavior motivational systems; (2) the role of self-regulatory cognitive processes in vulnerability to depression and other disorders; (3) the impact of treatments for depression, such as psychotherapy and medication, on self-regulatory function and dysfunction in depression; (4) how normative and non-normative socialization patterns influence the development of self-regulatory systems; (5) the contributory roles of self-regulation, affect, and psychopathology in determining immunologically-mediated susceptibility to illness; (6) development of novel multi-component treatments for depression targeting self-regulatory dysfunction; (7) utilization of brain imaging techniques to test hypotheses concerning self-regulation, including the nature and function of hypothetical regulatory systems and characterizing the breakdowns in self-regulation that lead to and accompany depression.

Rebecca A Shelby
Rebecca Shelby, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor with Tenure in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Duke University and the Director of Education and Training for the Duke Cancer Patient Support Program. Dr. Shelby is a member of the Duke Pain Prevention and Treatment Research Program and the Duke Cancer Control and Population Sciences Program. Dr. Shelby completed her graduate training in clinical psychology at the Ohio State University and her clinical internship and postdoctoral fellowship at Duke University Medical Center. Her research focuses on developing and evaluating behavioral interventions for cancer patients, management of cancer pain and treatment side effects, and improving adherence to recommended care. Dr. Shelby serves on the Duke clinical psychology internship faculty and supervises clinical psychology fellows, interns, and clinical psychology graduate practicum students completing clinical rotations as part of the Duke Cancer Patient Support Program.
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