Can 'Mentalizing' in groups ease anxiety and depression?
NCT ID NCT06833567
First seen Jun 25, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This study tests a brief group therapy that teaches people to better understand their own and others' thoughts and feelings (called mentalization). One hundred adults with anxiety or depression will be randomly assigned to this new therapy or to standard group therapy. Researchers will check if symptoms improve after 3 months.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- brief mentalization-based group psychotherapy
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could offer a new, short-term group therapy option for people with anxiety or depression.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-stage trial with only 100 participants and a short 3-month follow-up. The therapy may not prove more effective than current treatments.
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
-
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
-
About 100 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
-
Apr 2024
- Expected to finish
-
Jun 2026
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
-
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
-
18 years and older
- Sex
-
Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
-
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: * Participants are 18 years or older. * Participants have a diagnosis of ICD-10 F32, F33, F34, F41.1, F41.2, F43 or F43.2. * Participants have minimal relational skills to participate in group therapy. * Participants agree to be part of the study by giving signed written consent. Exclusion Criteria: * Participants have a diagnosis of ICD-10 F10-19, F20-29, F31, F42, F43.1, F60. * Participants with cognitive deficits assessed during the initial interview or diagnosis of ICD-10 F70-79. * Participants with planning or structured suicidal ideation. * Participants with difficulties in relational skills evaluated during the initial interview.
Get updates
Get notified about this study
Sign up to get updates when this study changes or when new studies for Anxiety disorders are added.
Genom att skicka in godkänner du våra Användarvillkor
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.
-
The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
-
The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
-
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
-
Instituto de Investigacion Biomedica de Malaga - IBIMA
RECRUITINGMálaga, Malaga, 29009, Spain
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
- Reading the Brain's signals to predict who benefits from deep brain stimulation
- Can a phone app that blocks distracting apps ease depression?
- Can teachers and a phone app ease teen depression?
- Can imagining exercise boost brain power after spinal cord injury?
- Can a group program teach teens to cope before therapy starts?
- Can intense brain zaps lift depression? scientists track blood flow in real time