Autobiographical memory style and clinical outcomes following mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT): An individual patient data meta-analysis
C. Hitchcock, C. Haag, Alicia J. Smith, W. Kuyken, C. Crane, C. Bockting, T. Dalgleish, Judita Rudokaite, F. Jermann, E. Watkins, Shivam D. Patel, I. Kuhn
Behaviour Research and Therapy May 25, 2021 preprint DOI: 10.31234/osf.io/s98a6 (opens in new tab) via Semantic Scholar
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractMemory specificity—the ability to recall specific, single-incident autobiographical memories—has been thought to predict recurrent depression. This individual patient data meta-analysis examined whether mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) improves memory specificity and whether pre-treatment memory specificity moderates treatment response. Across datasets including 880 participants, memory specificity did not significantly change from before to after treatment for either MBCT or control interventions. Baseline memory specificity did not predict treatment response, whether measured by symptom levels or relapse risk. These findings question the assumed role of memory specificity in treatments for depression.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Individual patient data meta-analysis |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 880 |
| Population | Adults with depression or at risk of relapse, drawn from studies evaluating MBCT |
| Intervention | Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy |
| Keywords | Medicine Psychology |
| Key finding | Memory specificity did not significantly change after MBCT or control interventions, and baseline memory specificity did not predict treatment response or relapse risk. |
Abstract
The ability to retrieve specific, single-incident autobiographical memories has been consistently posited as a predictor of recurrent depression. Elucidating the role of autobiographical memory specificity in patient-response to depressive treatments may improve treatment efficacy and facilitate use of science-driven interventions. We used recent methodological advances in individual patient data meta-analysis to determine a) whether memory specificity is improved following mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT), relative to control interventions, and b) whether pre-treatment memory specificity moderates treatment response. All bar one study evaluated MBCT for relapse prevention for depression. Our initial analysis therefore focussed on MBCT datasets only(n=708), then were repeated including the additional dataset(n=880). Memory specificity did not significantly differ from baseline to post-treatment for either MBCT and Control interventions. There was no evidence that baseline memory specificity predicted treatment response in terms of symptom-levels, or risk of relapse. Findings raise important questions regarding the role of memory specificity in depressive treatments.