The purpose of this proposal is to support the further training and research development of the applicant while she further develops and evaluates a one-week summer treatment program for separation anxiety disorder. Despite CBT's empirical support for the treatment of anxiety disorders in youth, additional research is needed to further develop and better disseminate this treatment. This need has been recognized by the NIH, which has called for the adaptation of existing efficacious behavioral therapies so that they are more community friendly. The development of this proposed alternative treatment strategy is predicated on evidence supporting the need for childhood treatments that are developmentally-sensitive, allow for creative application of intervention components (including parent involvement), incorporate a child's social context, and may be disseminable to the community. The immediate goal of the research study proposed for this fellowship is to further develop and assess the feasibility and clinical utility of a systematic, cognitive- behavioral intervention, targeting both participant symptoms and parenting practices, provided within the novel context of an intensive, one-week summer camp setting, for school-aged girls with SAD. Secondary goals include assessing the impact of the intervention on parenting practices, as well as the influence of these variables on the maintenance of treatment gains. To test the efficacy of this intervention, 30 female children with SAD will be recruited and randomized to a waitlist or treatment condition. All participants will receive the summer treatment program. Participants will be assessed at specific intervals (baseline, pre- treatment/post-waitlist, post-treatment, and 6-week follow-up) to track symptom severity and course, as well as treatment satisfaction. It is expected that children who participate in the trial of the proposed intervention will display significant improvements in anxiety symptoms and functional impairment relative to the waitlist condition. Additionally, these changes will be maintained 6-weeks following the intervention. The opportunity to conduct this research and receive the guidance and training of esteemed mentors and an expert, collaborative team will aid in the eventual achievement of long term goals, including conducting a randomized controlled trial of this intervention, disseminating brief and efficacious treatments through community-friendly venues, and affecting therapeutic change in families struggling with separation anxiety. The collaborations in place from the pilot investigation of this protocol will assist with treatment development, intervention delivery, and data analyses aimed at determining the efficacy of this intervention. Feasibility and utility will be examined and the treatment will be refined accordingly for subsequent investigations.
| Santucci, Lauren C; Ehrenreich-May, Jill (2013) A randomized controlled trial of the child anxiety multi-day program (CAMP) for separation anxiety disorder. Child Psychiatry Hum Dev 44:439-51 |
| Santucci, Lauren C; Ehrenreich, Jill T; Trosper, Sarah E et al. (2009) Development and Preliminary Evaluation of a 1-Week Summer Treatment Program for Separation Anxiety Disorder. Cogn Behav Pract 16:317-331 |
| Ehrenreich, Jill T; Santucci, Lauren C; Weiner, Courtney L (2008) SEPARATION ANXIETY DISORDER IN YOUTH: PHENOMENOLOGY, ASSESSMENT, AND TREATMENT. Psicol Conductual 16:389-412 |
