The ECHO study: compassion-focused therapy for young voice hearers and their caregivers. A pilot study

Voice hearing can occur in healthy people without a trigger, be caused by a traumatic event, or occur as part of a psychiatric disorder. There are still many gaps in our understanding of voice hearing, and research in this field can be challenging, maybe because it is associated with shame and stigma. Those who experience distress by voice hearing could benefit from a treatment, aimed directly at that. The ECHO manualized treatment is based on the principles of compassion-focused therapy (CFT).

Treatment will take place on several different psychiatric hospitals in the Region of Southern Denmark. Treatment consists of a 10-session, manualized CFT for voice hearing. Caregivers participate in half of the sessions, and a recording of the voice content is made, which the caregivers are encouraged to listen to. The study is designed as a prospective single-arm pre-post intervention study using a mirror-image approach, in which participants serve as their own controls over time. The intervention group consists of (N = 60) voice-hearing adolescents aged 13-18 years. Additionally, a clinical comparison group (who also receive the intervention) of (N = 20) individuals aged 18-20 years with first-episode schizophrenia and voice hearing is included for descriptive and exploratory analyses. Data are collected 3 months prior to CFT treatment, immediately before the start of treatment, immediately after treatment is completed, and at 1 month follow-up. Data will be centered around social cognition, perceived social safeness, social connectedness, general well being, auditory hallucinations and compassion.

The ECHO study addresses the wellbeing and thriving of an overlooked group of young people. The results of this study will provide information about who the voice hearers are, what challenges they face, and how they perceive them. The results will also provide information about the feasibility and efficacy of the treatment manual and, thus, its potential further implementability. Caregivers participate in half of the sessions, to facilitate a common language about mental states and voice hearing. To support their understanding, a recording of the voice content is made and the caregivers are encouraged to listen to it. We suggest that when caregivers understand the young voice hearers' experiences, they can adjust their expectations and approach accordingly. We also suggest that by sharing the voice content, the young voice hearer will feel less isolated.

https://clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT07314515, identifier NCT07314515.