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The Influence of Treatment Format on Schema Therapy for Borderline Personality Disorder

Key facts

Who runs it
University of Amsterdam
Where
Netherlands3 sites in 1 countryChoose a country to see its sites
Trial code
Status
Enrolling by invitation
People taking part
132 people, planned
Started
10 Nov 2023
Expected to end
30 Aug 2030
Type of study
Interventional, 2 groupsOne group gets an existing treatment, for comparison.
Treatments tested
  • Individual Schema Therapy (IST)
  • Individual-Group Schema Therapy (IGST)
Record updated
6 May 2026

Who can take part

Age
18 years to 70 years
Sex
Women and men
Healthy volunteers
Cannot take part

The registry criteria, word for word

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Who can take part

  • BPD as defined by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition (DSM-5), assessed with the Structured Clinical Interview for the DSM-5 Personality Disorders (SCID-5-PD), as primary diagnosis
  • BPDSI total score ≥ 20 (i.e, severity in the BPD range, Giesen-Bloo et al., 2010)
  • Ability to understand, read, write and speak Dutch, or English if the site has research assistants and therapists of both conditions that are sufficiently fluent in English, as well as an English ST group (as at ACTP)

Who cannot take part

  • DSM-5 substance use disorder that needs clinical detox according to the clinical staff (after 6 weeks of abstinence participation is possible)
  • Comorbid psychotic disorder (patients with temporary psychotic problems falling under BPD criterion 9 are not excluded)
  • DSM-5 Bipolar disorder, type 1 (current or past)
  • Serious neurological problems such as dementia
  • Not able or willing to plan participation in the treatment sessions. Note 1. In case of suspicion of exclusion criteria that need specific assessment, like IQ and dementia, a formal diagnostic assessment needs to be done before in/exclusion can be decided; Note 2. No other psychological treatment during the study follow-up period is provided, unless this is necessary (clinical judgment). The 1 year treatment-free follow-up period is part of the treatment protocol, to help patients gain experience with life without mental health care. After 1 year further treatment can be offered, if indicated
  • Acute suicide risk
  • Intelligence Quotient (IQ) < 80
  • Patients should not start with any form of psychological treatment during screening or during the study's waitlist or treatment. (Low frequency supportive treatment may be continued during wait and screening, but not during the study treatment.)

Check if you might fit

Answer for yourself. This is not a decision: only the study team can say whether you can take part.

  • Are you between 18 and 70 years old?

This trial has no sites in United States.

It has sites in one country. Choose a country to see its sites.

About the trial

What the trial wants to find out

The goal of this clinical trial is to compare etc. in patients with borderline personality disorder pure individual schema therapy to combined individual-group schema therapy. The main questions it aims to answer are:

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* is there a difference in effectiveness? * is there a difference in (early) treatment dropout?

Participants will receive either

* individual schema therapy or * combined individual-group schema therapy.

Researchers will compare individual to combined individual-group schema therapy see if there is a difference in effects and/or a difference in dropout from treatment.

The 2 groups in the trial

  • Individual Schema Therapy (IST)Existing treatment, for comparison

    IST will follow the revised protocol described by Arntz \& van Genderen. In the first year, 2 sessions (of 50-60 minutes each) per week will be provided, with at least one day in between. In the second year, the frequency will be reduced to once a week for the first 6 months, for the next 3 months to once every two weeks, and for the last 3 months three (booster) sessions will be offered. Therapists need to be trained at least at the junior level of the Dutch ST Association, or of the International ST society (ISST), or having successfully completed the basic IST training and delivering the trial treatments under supervision of a recognized ST supervisor.

  • Combined Individual-Group Schema Therapy (IGST)Existing treatment, for comparison

    In IGST individual sessions (45-60 min) are provided weekly in the first year, and once every 2 weeks in the first three quarters of the second year, after which 3 monthly booster sessions are offered. Group sessions take place once per week for 1.5 years. After 1.5 years, patients leave the group but continue with IST during the last .5 year. If slots are available, new patients can enter the ST group every 10 weeks. GST is provided as semi-closed group format developed from the closed format as developed by Farrell \& Shaw. IST is based on Arntz \& van Genderen, with the addition that IST and GST are coordinated at weekly peer supervision meetings, and that problems related to the patient's participation in the group are put on the IST agenda. GST therapists don't need to be IST therapist of their patients. The same training requirements hold as in the IST arm. Additionally, GST-therapists completed GST training and receive(d) at least 10 GST supervisions.

    Treatment: Individual-Group Schema Therapy (IGST)

Questions to ask the study team

  1. How often do I need to come in, and for how long each time?
  2. Are travel costs paid?
  3. Can I keep my own doctor?
  4. What happens if I want to stop?

Contact the study team: see the registry record → Contacts and Locations

Print a page for my doctor

Data and sources

Registry record
Listed on ClinicalTrials.gov.
Official title
The Influence of Treatment Format on Effectiveness of and Dropout From Schema Therapy for Borderline Personality Disorder: Individual vs. Combined Individual Group Schema Therapy
Fit questions
Built from NCT05986552, who can take part
Record updated
6 May 2026