(PS8-39) Effects of Brief Cognitive Behavioral Therapy on suicide cognitions and emotion dysregulation

In 2022, 13.2 million people had serious thoughts of suicide. Review of the literature shows that difficulties with emotion regulation are positively associated with suicidal ideation and attempts. People experiencing suicidal ideations often have suicide specific cognitions like “I’m unlovable” or “I’m a burden.” These cognitive thinking traps often exacerbate one’s suicide risk. Brief Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (BCBT) is an evidence-based treatment that specifically targets both emotion dysregulation and cognitive rigidity in patients by teaching strategies to improve emotion regulation and cognitive reappraisal. The current study aims to examine the effects of BCBT as compared to an active treatment comparator on suicide specific cognitions and emotion dysregulation before and after treatment in a randomized controlled trial conducted remotely via telehealth. Participants (N = 96; mAge = 31.5; 65% female; 73% white; 38% SGM) were assigned to either BCBT, an evidence-based treatment shown to reduce suicide attempts, or person-centered therapy (PCT), an evidence-based treatment for psychiatric symptom severity that has demonstrated to reduce suicidal ideation in clinical trials. Suicide cognitions were measured with the Suicide Cognitions Scale – Revised (SCS-R). Emotion dysregulation was assessed with Difficulties in Emotional Regulation Scale – Short Form (DERS-SF). Missing data follow-up data was accounted using an expectation-maximum imputation. A split plot ANOVA was conducted to examine the effects of time (baseline vs. 3-months post treatment) and tx (BCBT vs. PCT) on participant scores. A significant main effect of time was found for the SCS-R (Fpooled(1, 94) = 160.41, p < .001, partial η² = .631), indicating that scores decreased significantly from pre- to post-treatment. However, the interaction between treatment and time was not significant, Fpooled(1, 94) = 2.24, p = .138, partial η² = .023. A significant main effect of time was found for 5 of the 6 sub-scales of emotional dysregulation: Strategies (Fpooled(1, 94) = 63.66, p < .001, partial η² = .404), Nonacceptance (Fpooled(1, 94) = 27.25, p < .001, partial η² = .225), Impulse (Fpooled(1, 94) = 27.31, p < .001, partial η² = .225), Goals (Fpooled(1, 94) = 31.20, p < .001, partial η² = .249), and Clarity (Fpooled(1, 94) = 44.40, p < .001, partial η² = .321). No significant interaction between treatment and time was found for any sub-scale. BCBT demonstrated a significant decrease in suicidal cognitions and emotional dysregulation, consistent with our comparator treatment. This indicates that BCBT is an acceptable treatment method for reducing suicide cognitions and emotion dysregulation in addition to suicide attempts. Furthermore, as this is self-report data it is important to reflect on potential bias that might influence responses. Limitations of the analysis include the lack of further follow-up data, which would provide longitudinal insight into the lasting effects of each treatment condition. This will be corrected at the time of presentation by including follow-up data for 6-month, 9-month, and 12-month post baseline.