Attention training interventions for PTSD in bereaved Chinese parents who have lost their only child - A randomized controlled trial with behavioral and neuroimaging data

Sep 29, 2026

Uploaded by Mabel

Attentional bias toward threat is a core mechanism in PTSD, yet randomized controlled trials comparing attention bias modification (ABM), attention control training (ACT), and its nonemotional variant attention control geometric training (ACG) in a highly vulnerable group remain limited. This RCT with Shidu parents randomizes participants to ABM, ACT, or ACG and evaluates PTSD clusters, anxiety, depression, attentional bias, and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex activity via fNIRS over treatment and follow-up.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages12

Reading Time30 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Background

Methods

Results

Conclusions

Introduction

International Journal of Clinical and Health Psychology 25 (2025) 100655 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect International Journal of Clinical and Health Psychology journal [homepage:](homepage: www.elsevier.es/ijchp)[ www.elsevier.es/ijchp](homepage: www.elsevier.es/ijchp) | Attention training interventions for PTSD in bereaved Chinese parents who have lost their only child: A randomized controlled trial with behavioral and neuroimaging data
Buzohre Elia,b,c, Fei Xiao b,c, Xuanang Liu b,c, Madina Nijatb,c, Zhengkui Liu b,c,*
a Department of Psychology, Normal College, Shihezi University, Shihezi, 832003, China
b State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Science and Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 16 Lincui Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100101, China
c Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China | | | --- | --- | | A R T I C L E I N F O
Keywords:
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) Attentional bias
Attentional control training (ACT)
Parents who have lost their only child (Shidu parents)
Randomized controlled trial (RCT) | A B S T R A C T
Background: : Attentional bias towards threat is a core mechanism underlying posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Although attention bias modification (ABM) and attention control training (ACT) have been studied for PTSD, randomized controlled trials (RCTs) have reported inconsistent outcomes. Additionally, the nonemotional conditioning effect of ACT remains unvalidated. Shidu parents in China, a uniquely vulnerable group who have lost their only child, often suffer from severe and persistent PTSD, however, no RCT has yet investigated attention-based interventions among them. Thus, this RCT compared the efficacy of ABM, ACT, and attention control geometric training (ACG), which adapts ACT in a nonemotional context, on PTSD symptoms and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) activity among Shidu parents.
Methods: : Participants were randomly assigned to the ABM (n = 21), ACT (n = 20), and ACG (n = 21) groups and completed eight biweekly sessions ofABM, ACT, and ACG, respectively. Symptoms, including PTSD clusters and anxiety as primary outcomes and PTSD total and depression as secondary outcomes, along with attentional bias were assessed at pre-treatment, mid-treatment, post-treatment, and a four-month follow-up. DLPFC activity was measured using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) at pre-treatment, mid-treatment and posttreatment.
Results: : ACT demonstrated significant improvement in intrusion symptoms, with treatment effects sustained atthe four-month follow-up. However, other PTSD symptom clusters, as well as anxiety and depression, did not show significant improvement across any of the groups. At the neurocognitive level, ACT showed reduced vigilance toward threat and decrease in bilateral DLPFC activation under the vigilance condition. In contrast, ACG exhibited only a nonsignificant trend toward reduced vigilance to threat, along with reduction in left DLPFC activity under the same condition. ABM showed no significant improvements in either behavioral or neural measures.
Conclusions: : This study provides preliminary evidence that ACT may be a promising intervention for reducing intrusion symptoms and threat vigilance in Shidu parents, potentially through modulating DLPFC activation. These findings highlight the importance of targeting specific PTSD symptom clusters and corresponding neural pathways in future trauma interventions. | Introduction Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a debilitating psychiatric condition that can develop following exposure to traumatic events, such as the loss of a loved one (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). In China, a population particularly vulnerable to PTSD are Shidu parents, those who have lost their only child and, having exceeded their reproductive years (with mothers typically over 49 yea

FAQs

What is the main goal of this randomized controlled trial?

To compare ABM, ACT, and ACG in reducing PTSD symptoms and related neural activity in Shidu parents.

How were participants assigned and what was the intervention schedule?

Participants were randomly assigned to ABM (n=21), ACT (n=20), and ACG (n=21) and completed eight biweekly sessions of the assigned training.

Which intervention showed significant clinical benefits and what did it affect?

ACT significantly improved intrusion symptoms, with effects sustained at the four-month follow-up, and it reduced threat-related vigilance and bilateral DLPFC activation under the vigilance condition.

Sep 29, 2026

Uploaded by Mabel