Can matching depression therapy to your weaknesses or strengths boost results?
NCT ID NCT04576182
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study is testing two types of talk therapy for major depression: supportive-expressive therapy and emotion-focused therapy. The goal is to see if people do better when the therapy matches their personal style—whether they tend to think deeply about their problems (insight) or process emotions strongly. 124 adults with depression will receive 16 weeks of therapy and be followed for 2 years. Researchers will track changes in depression symptoms using standard questionnaires.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Supportive-expressive therapy and emotion-focused therapy (both behavioral interventions)
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could help doctors choose the best talk therapy for each person with depression, making treatment more effective.
- What could go wrong
- This is a relatively small, early-stage study focused on understanding how therapies work, not on proving a new cure. Results may not apply to everyone with depression.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 124 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Nov 2020
- Expected to finish
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May 2027
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 to 65 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Meeting major depressive disorder diagnostic criteria using the structured clinical interviews for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-5 and scoring more than 14 on the 17-item Hamilton rating scale for depression at two evaluations (one week apart) (Hamilton, 1967). * If on medication, patients' dosage must be stable for at least three months prior to entering the study, and they must be willing to maintain stable dosage for the duration of treatment * Age between 18 and 65 * Hebrew language fluency * Provision of written informed consent. Exclusion Criteria: * Current risk of suicide or self-harm * current substance abuse disorders * current or past schizophrenia or psychosis, bipolar disorder, or severe eating disorder requiring medical monitoring * history of organic mental disease * currently in psychotherapy
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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University of Haifa
RECRUITINGHaifa, Israel
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