Positive Psychotherapy Comparable to CBT for managing Anxiety: Study
Researchers have found in a new study that Positive Psychotherapy (PPT) produced anxiety and well-being outcomes statistically comparable to standard cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) in an online group format. Both approaches achieved durable, clinically meaningful improvements sustained at 3 months, suggesting PPT may be a useful alternative for patients who do not respond to or prefer to avoid traditional exposure-based treatment. The study was published in PLOS One by Catiana L. and colleagues.
For the purpose of assessing the comparative effectiveness of both psychological interventions, a randomized controlled trial was conducted involving 110 adult participants suffering from anxiety disorders. These participants were randomly divided into two parallel online group interventions consisting of 53 participants subjected to positive psychology therapy (PPT) and 57 participants undergoing cognitive behavior therapy (CBT).
Standardized questionnaires were used to assess the primary endpoints, which were anxiety intensity, subjective well-being and quality of life, along with psychological distress as a secondary endpoint. The standardized measures were taken at three different stages of the trial, which included baseline measurement (T0), end-of-intervention (T1) and a three-month post intervention follow-up measurement (T2).
Key findings:
- The study was performed on 110 patients, who were randomly assigned to PPT group of 53 participants and CBT group of 57 participants.
- Psychological treatments were carried out in 10-week online group sessions, followed by three months of follow-up observation after treatment.
- Statistical comparison between PPT and CBT groups in main effects was found to be statistically insignificant for all parameters except for some specific FQ scores.
- The time-by-group interactions were statistically insignificant.
- Effect size for the time factor was found to be medium and high in both treatment groups from pre- to post-treatment periods.
- Anxiety, subjective happiness, and psychological distress were significantly reduced in both treatment groups from T0 to T1, and full effect persisted at the 3-month follow-up period (T2).
To sum up, the effectiveness of positive psychology therapy is no less than the effectiveness of the classical cognitive behavioral therapy in terms of the reduction of the anxiety symptoms and improvement of quality of life. Due to the achievement of the moderate-to-high effect sizes during a 3-month follow-up period, the internet group PPT has proved itself to be a suitable treatment choice.
Reference:
Engelhardt CL, Keller S, Berger T, Laireiter A-R (2026) Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) and Positive Psychotherapy (PPT) for the treatment of anxiety disorders in an online group setting: A randomized controlled trial. PLoS One 21(8): e0355614. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0355614
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