Remote cognitive behaviour therapy for social anxiety disorder: A meta-analysis

Abstract

Remote cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) for social anxiety disorder (SAD) has the potential to improve access to treatment by reducing economic, geographic, and psychological barriers. The aim of this study was to use a meta-analytic approach to examine the efficacy of the different remote CBT methods for treating SAD. A systematic electronic database search was used to identify 31 studies (n = 2905; mean age range: 24.73–41.65 years; mean female representation = 60.2 %). Pooled within-group analyses indicated large effect sizes from pre-treatment to post-treatment (Hedges’ g = 1.06; 95 % CI: 0.96–1.16) and pre-treatment to follow up (g = 1.18; 95 % CI: 1.03–1.33) for remote CBT. Internet-delivered CBT (g = 1.08; 95 % CI: 0.98–1.19) and application-delivered CBT (g = 1.19; 95 % CI: 0.75–1.64) produced large within-group effect sizes. Bibliotherapy-delivered CBT (g = 0.79; 95 % CI: 0.45–1.13) produced medium within-group effect sizes. Pooled between-group findings indicate that remote CBT treatments were more effective than passive control (g = 0.87; 95 % CI: 0.70–1.03) and non-CBT remote treatments (g = 0.41; 95 % CI: 0.17–0.66), and were at least as effective, or slightly more effective, than face-to-face CBT treatments (g = 0.34; 95 % CI: 0.14–0.54). These findings have important implications for the dissemination of remote and stepped-care treatments for SAD.