Grant: CIHR Fellowship

Obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) is a debilitating mental health disorder characterized by distressing intrusive thoughts and compulsive behaviours. Although cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is an effective treatment for many people with OCD, about 1/3 of individuals who seek CBT do not experience relief from their symptoms. Accordingly, it is critical to research alternative treatments that may help more individuals achieve remission. Mindfulness based cognitive therapy (MBCT) holds promise as a treatment for OCD, with initial research showing that individuals with OCD who received mindfulness based treatments experienced improvements in their symptoms and found the treatments to be satisfying and helpful. The purpose of this study is to conduct a larger-scale clinical trial to examine the effectiveness of using MBCT to treat OCD. We will recruit 150 treatment-seeking individuals with OCD, and randomly assign them to either: 1) standard CBT; 2) MBCT; or 3) a wait list control group. Participants will be assessed prior to, during and following treatment. We predict that individuals who receive MBCT will experience greater improvements in OCD symptoms compared to the wait list participants. We will also compare the performance of CBT and MBCT to one another. In addition, we will examine differences in the ways in which CBT and MBCT produce change in OCD symptoms, which will help us to understand more about how each of these treatments work, and for whom. Individuals on the wait list will be offered their choice of treatment (i.e., CBT or MBCT) once the study period is complete. This study will be the first to examine the effectiveness of MBCT for OCD in a large randomized controlled trial. This study has the potential to make a strong impact on the field, because if MBCT can be shown to be effective for OCD, this will inform future treatment research and ultimately has the potential to increase the number of individuals with OCD who can be effectively treated.