An online single-session intervention for intrusive thoughts in young adults: Preliminary findings

Intrusive thoughts are prevalent across the lifespan and can be particularly distressing during adolescence and young adulthood. Despite their high prevalence, many individuals lack access to effective strategies for managing these thoughts. Brief, accessible, and evidence-based interventions are needed to help individuals cope with intrusive thought-related distress. The present study aimed to pilot the effectiveness of a brief online Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)-based single-session intervention (SSI) that provided psychoeducation on intrusive thoughts and strategies for managing distress arising from negative appraisals in young adults. We recruited individuals aged 18-25 who reported that they experienced distressing thoughts in the last week. Distress associated with intrusive thoughts and hopelessness was measured at pre-intervention, post-intervention, and at two-week follow-up. Within-subject ANOVAs revealed significant reductions in intrusive thought-related distress and hopelessness from pre- to post-intervention across all time points for both groups. The active SSI group had a significant reduction in distress compared to the active control group. There were no other significant interaction effects observed, either when considering hopelessness or at the follow-up time point. These preliminary findings highlight the importance of single-session interventions in helping youth understand and cope with intrusive thoughts. Future research should explore the relative contributions of different intervention components and the long-term effects on mental health outcomes.