Rapid relief online: A randomized trial of a single-session simple-swift reconstruction approach group during the...

Large-scale crises require brief, scalable, on-line mental-health interventions. We examined the effectiveness of a single 90-120 min videoconference group based on the Simple-Swift Reconstruction Approach (SSRA).

In a parallel-group randomized trial, 277 Chinese adults were assigned to SSRA (n = 143) or a waiting-list control (n = 134). Baseline and 2-week outcomes were the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7), and General Self-Efficacy Scale (GSES). The SSRA group also completed Subjective Units of Disturbance (SUD) ratings immediately before and after the session. Complete-case analyses used paired and independent t-tests with Cohen's d (two-tailed α = 0.05).

One hundred twenty-one SSRA participants (19 % male; M = 34.9 years, SD = 11.3) attended the SSRA session and showed a large within-session SUD reduction (baseline M = 5.81, SD = 1.62; post M = 3.20, SD = 1.57; t(120) = 19.26, p < .001, d = 1.75). Two-week follow-up data were available for 71 SSRA and 19 control participants (retention = 32.5 %). Within the SSRA group, depressive symptoms (Δ = -2.14, d = 0.63), anxiety (Δ = -1.89, d = 0.66), and self-efficacy (Δ = +2.28, d = 0.41) improved descriptively. However, only the between-group difference for depression (PHQ-9) reached significance (t(24.7) = -2.60, p = .015, d = 0.76); between-group GAD-7 and GSES were nonsignificant. Age and sex did not moderate outcomes.

A one-off, on-line SSRA group produced a large within-session reduction in subjective distress and a significant between-group improvement in depressive symptoms over two weeks, supporting SSRA as a rapid, low-intensity option during public-health emergencies. Replication with larger samples and longer follow-up is recommended.