The Efficacy of Metacognitive Therapy on Reduction of Pathological Symptoms and Trait Anxiety Intensity in Patients with Generalized Anxiety Disorder

This study evaluated the efficacy of metacognitive therapy (MCT) on reducing the pathological symptoms and trait anxiety of patients suffering from generalized anxiety disorder. The current study employed a multiple baseline single case study design. Patients with GAD (3 women and 2 men) meeting DSM-IV criteria for GAD were selected using purposeful sampling method and participated in the therapeutic intervention after obtaining treatment requirements. The treatment consisted of 8–12 weekly sessions. Assessments were conducted at pre-treatment, post-treatment, 6, and 12-month follow-up on several clinical measures: Generalized Anxiety Disorder Questionnaire (GAD-Q-IV), Beck anxiety inventory (BAI) and Trait-Anxiety Subscale of the State-Trait-anxiety inventory (STAI-T). Data were analyzed using the index of improvement percentage and reliable change index (RCI). The results showed that MCT was significantly effective in reducing treatment's target. It can be concluded that metacognitive therapy has appropriate efficacy in the treatment of men and women with generalized anxiety disorder.