Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Depressed Individuals Living With Spinal Cord Injury Sustained Within 5 Years

This randomized controlled trial aims to assess effects of videoconferencing acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) on mental health outcomes in individuals living with spinal cord injuries (SCI). A total of 60 individuals living with SCI sustained within 5 years and experiencing depressive symptoms will be recruited and randomly assigned to either the ACT group or the wait-list control group. The ACT group will receive 8 weekly individual ACT sessions guided by a coach through videoconferencing. The wait-list group will receive ACT sessions after the study period ends. We will provide psychoeducation materials related to SCI as supplemental resources to both groups. Mental health outcomes using self-reported questionnaires will be collected at pretest, posttest, and 2-month follow-up. Exploratory hypotheses are that the group undergoing the ACT intervention supplemented with psychoeducation will show improvements in mental health outcomes (e.g., depression) and ACT processes (e.g., psychological flexibility) at posttest and 2-month follow-up, compared to the wait-list control group provided with psychoeducation materials alone. Interviews will be conducted at posttest to explore the participants' experiences in ACT.

Inclusion Criteria:community-dwelling adults (aged 18 years or older) living with spinal cord injuries sustained within 5 yearshaving at least mild depression measured by the Patient Health Questionnaire-9having a computer or a smartphone and internet access at homeExclusion Criteria:having cognitive deficits or language barriers that might impede study participationhaving suicidal thoughts and attempts;having a prior experience with acceptance and commitment therapy