This program has its origins in a grant-funded Randomized Clinical Trial examining the efficacy of an Evolutionary-Driven Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Depression. The host institution of that trial was the Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy / International Institute for the Advanced Studies of Psychotherapy and Applied Mental Health, Babes-Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania.

The team consisted of clinical and research psychologists experts on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, as well as world-famous experts on Evolutionary Psychology, such as David Buss, Todd Shackelford and Aurelio Jose Figueredo.

GRANT INFORMATION

GRANT TITLE: Darwinian Psychotherapy: A Clinical Trial for an Evolutionary-Driven Type of Intervention for Depression
Principal Investigator: Cezar Giosan, PhD
Funding Agency: CNCS-UEFISCDI
Grant Number: PN-II-ID PCE 2011-3-0230
Amount: ~$450,000 (1.6M RON)
Period: 11/1/2011-10/1/2016
Host Institution: Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Babes-Bolyai University

IN THIS PROJECT, OUR GROUP:

(a) Developed a manual for an evolutionary-driven form of psychotherapy for depression, in which therapeutic interventions focus on ultimate causes of this condition.

and

(b) Conducted a randomized clinical trial to determine the efficacy of such interventions. Eighty-six depressed subjects were recruited and randomly assigned to two conditions: (a) Cognitive Evolutonary Therapy (CET) and (b) Cognitive Therapy (CT). The participants in both conditions received 12 weeks of cognitive therapy, but the CET group also received the proposed evolutionary-driven intervention. Depression measures were administered pre- and post-treatment, as well as each therapy session. Outcome depression severity scores were compared across the conditions.

THE RESULTS OF THE CLINICAL TRIAL

The results of this trial showed that the CET and CT protocols were equally efficacious, with the CET protocol showing a consistent pattern of larger gains during the treatment. Fewer CET participants were classified as having moderate or severe depression over time, with between-group analyses showing significant differences in this respect at both post-treatment and follow-up. Importantly, in addition, the CET group showed significantly more improvement in functioning (particularly social and leisure activities) compared to the CT group.