Predictors of treatment outcome in cognitive behavioral therapy for intermittent explosive disorder: A preliminary analysis.

Abstract

The present study examined potential treatment outcome predictors of a multicomponent cognitive behavioral intervention for intermittent explosive disorder (IED). The sample (n = 64; 22 female) consisted of individuals with a current diagnosis of IED that completed treatment across three study trials. Treatment outcome predictors assessed included demographic variables, psychiatric comorbidity, symptom severity, and treatment motivation/engagement. Treatment outcomes were (a) change in number of past-week aggressive acts from pretreatment to posttreatment and (b) presence of IED diagnosis at posttreatment. Results indicated those who endorsed lower trait anger were more likely to remit from IED diagnosis at posttreatment. No other variables were found to significantly predict treatment outcome. These findings support the notion that cognitive behavioral therapy can be effective for a wide range of individuals with IED, with little variation in efficaciousness based on presence of demographic characteristics, comorbid disorders, or treatment motivation/engagement. This seems to be particularly the case for individuals with lower levels of trait anger. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).