The relationships among working alliance, group cohesion and homework engagement in group cognitive behaviour therapy for social anxiety disorder

Abstract

ABSTRACT Objective Few studies have investigated the role of generic relational factors, such as group cohesion and working alliance, in group cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) for social anxiety disorder (SAD). The aim of this study was to examine the temporal associations among working alliance, group cohesion, and an index of a CBT-specific factor, homework engagement, as correlates of fear of negative evaluation and symptoms of social anxiety in group CBT for SAD. Method There were 105 participants with a diagnosis of social anxiety disorder who were randomly assigned to 12 sessions of group imagery-enhanced or standard CBT. Participants completed measures at various time points during the 12-session interventions, and the relationship among variables was examined through random-intercept cross-lagged panel models. Results Group cohesion was significantly associated with social anxiety symptoms at the end of treatment, however there was no significant relationship with working alliance. Greater homework engagement predicted lower social interaction anxiety, but only during mid-treatment. Conclusion The results highlight the importance of supporting group cohesion and maximising homework engagement during core components of social anxiety treatment such as behavioural experiments.