Effect of Internet-based versus face-to-face Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Dependent Personality Disorder: A randomized clinical trial

Background: Dependent Personality Disorder (DPD) is the most prevalent personality disorder, which is associated with several negative consequences. Objectives: The current study aimed to investigate the effect of ICBT on DPD and compare it with face-to-face CBT in a sample of DPD patients. Method: The participants were adults with DPD recruited from various counseling and psychological clinics in Tehran, Iran. They were randomly assigned to receive face-to-face CBT ( n = 20) or ICBT ( n = 20). Depression-Anxiety-Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21) and Interpersonal Problems Questionnaire (IIP-32) were completed at pre-and post-treatment. Result: Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) showed that the face-to-face CBT group had significantly lower interpersonal problem scores than the ICBT group (F=23.81, p<0.05). However, no significant difference was observed between the face-to-face CBT and ICBT groups in anxiety (F=3.68, p<0.05) and depression (F=1.70, p<0.05). Conclusion: The findings support the effects of both ICBT and face-to-face CBT in treating patients with DPD. While both ICBT and face-to-face CBT demonstrated favorable outcomes, our study suggests an advantage of face-to-face CBT in addressing interpersonal problems among these patients. Further research is needed to investigate the long-term effects of ICBT to enhance traditional approaches for DPD.