An ACT self-help intervention for adults with a visible difference in appearance: A pilot feasibility and acceptability randomized controlled study

Abstract

Individuals living with a visible difference in appearance experience high levels of social anxiety, yet self-help interventions for this heterogeneous population are not available. We conducted a pilot trial of a novel Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) based self-help intervention.Individuals with anxiety about having a visible difference in appearance (n = 284) were randomized to an ACT-based four-week intervention (n = 145) or a waitlist control condition (n = 139). We collected pre and follow-up (four-weeks after the completion of the intervention) data. Primary outcomes included social anxiety and impairments in functioning. Psychological flexibility (PF) was also examined. ANCOVAs, controlling for pre scores, indicated significant improvements in functioning by the intervention group. No significant differences were observed for anxiety and PF between conditions at follow-up. Drop out was 68% for the intervention and 41% for the control group, with no differences in the groups in age, origin, gender, or type of visible difference. Participants in the intervention group found the intervention almost equally, useful (77%) and helpful (73%). An ACT-based self-help intervention can alleviate distress related to visible difference in appearance. More sophisticated designs are needed now, to collect idiographic and longitudinal data and examine personalized changes across time in this population.