Intervention Effect of Emotional Working Memory Training on University Students With Depressive Symptom

A study testing EWM-T in people with Depressive Symptoms, run by Yu-hua Weng at 1 site in China.

Completed

Finished. The study has ended and is not enrolling. Results may be posted on the official record.

Trial summary

Objective: To investigate the effects of emotional working memory training (EWM-T) on depressive symptoms and rumination among university students. Methods: The experimental group comprised 25 participants who underwent 21 days of emotional working memory training, which involved viewing a continuous stream of… Read more about this study

Who is it for?: Any age
Conditions the study is for: Depressive Symptoms
What is being tested?: EWM-T
Type of treatment: Lifestyle or therapy programme
Could I receive a placebo?: No, everyone receives an active treatment
How many people: 50 participants
Where: 1 siteChina
Study dates: 11 Oct 2022to 21 Mar 2023
Phase: Interventional
Are there results?: None posted in the registry

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

Ages Any age
All sexes
No healthy volunteers
Child, Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

Study from Fujian Medical University, BDI-II scores above 14 points.

Who cannot join

no suicidal behavior

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

China1 site

School of Health, Fujian Medical University
Fuzhou

Other trials in China

About this study

Objective: To investigate the effects of emotional working memory training (EWM-T) on depressive symptoms and rumination among university students.

Methods: The experimental group comprised 25 participants who underwent 21 days of emotional working memory training, which involved viewing a continuous stream of negative emotional face content on a grid and remembering the faces and locations presented on the grid. The control group consisted of 25 participants. The Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II), the Chinese version of the Character-Digital Breadth Test, and the Ruminative Responses Scale (RRS) were used as the pre- and post-test indicators.

Read the detailed description

Participants and Design The G*Power 3.1 program was used to determine the recommended sample size is 46 for the study(d=0.35,1-β＝80％,α=0.05). This anticipated effect size was based on a working memory training intervention experiment, which had a medium effect size (Unread and Koster 2014). The participants were recruited from Fujian Medical University, and 278 students volunteered to take part in the BDI-Ⅱ. Finally, 50 university students with BDI-II scores above 14 points and with no suicidal behavior were recruited as participants. They were randomly assigned to either an experimental group (n=25) or a control group (n=25). After grouping, the participants' rumination tendency and working memory ability were assessed using the Ruminative Responses Scale (RRS) and the Character-Digital Breadth Test. Subsequently, the experimental group completed twenty-one 20 to 30 minute EWM-T training sessions within one month, and the control group was not treated. A month later, the participants were assessed again for depressive symptoms, working memory ability, and rumination tendency. This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Fujian Medical University, and all the participants provided signed informed consent. If they were found to be at risk of suicide, the experiment was terminated immediately. If the participants felt uncomfortable, they could withdraw from the experiment at any time, and psychological help was provided if they so desired.
Materials and Measures 2.1 Beck Depression Inventory-Ⅱ (BDI-Ⅱ) The BDI-II is the most prevalent self-report scale assessing the presence and severity of depressive symptoms. It is a 21-item scale that was used to assess the severity of depressive symptoms in the past two weeks. The scores range from 0 to 63. A higher total score on the scale indicated more severe depressive symptoms. (Wang 2011). 2.2 Ruminative Responses Scale (RRS) The Ruminative Response Scale (RRS) is a scale of 22 items scored on a 4-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (almost never) to 4 (almost always). It was used to assess ruminative thinking, with higher scores indicating a higher degree of ruminative symptoms. It includes three dimensions: symptom rumination, forced thinking, and introspective. The Chinese version of the RRS is suitable for evaluating the rumination thinking of Chinese university students (Han and Yang 2009). 2.3 Character-Digital Breadth Test The experimenter read aloud some combinations of characters and numbers, and after the experimenter finished speaking, the participants first stated the numbers in descending order and then the characters in descending order. For example, in the fourth pass: "8B3A," the participant needed to answer "38AB," and then the test began after the person understood the rules. Different levels (2-9 levels) had various lengths of characters and numbers. The higher the level, the longer the length. Each level contained four items. Scoring was based on the total number of correct items passed (correct number of character digit spans) and the rank of the longest items passed (longest sequence of character digit spans). Each item was completed when all items at a certain level were incorrect. The greater the number of correct items passed, the higher the level of the longest items, the greater the working memory breadth, and the stronger the working memory ability . 2.4 EWM-T This paradigm was adapted from the n-back program described by Jaeggi et al. (2009) and comprised an affective dual n-back task consisting of a series of trials, each of which simultaneously presented a face (for 500 ms) on a 4 × 4 grid on a monitor. Intermediate interval 2500ms, during which, Participants press a button to determine if the current face or position is consistent with the first n. If the position is the same, press "F"; if the face is the same, press "J"; if the face and position are not the same, do not react. Training started at n = 1; if the participants got more than 80% correct, the level of n-back increased by one in the next block. Conversely, if the participants got less than 60% correct, the level of n-back decreased by 1 in the next block. If the 2-back accuracy was greater than 80%, the next block difficulty was upgraded to 3-back; if the 3-back accuracy was less than 60%, the next block difficulty was downgraded to 2-back. The maximum value of n is 8. The 20 daily 20-30 min training sessions consisted of 20 blocks of 20+ n trials. The faces used in this training were selected from the Chinese Facial Emotional Picture System (CFAPS), and 12 faces (six male and six female) with fear, anger, disgust, and sadness were selected as n-back experimental materials.
Data Analysis An independent samples t-test was used to determine whether the experimental and control groups had varying levels of BDI-II, RRS, and Character-Digital Breadth Test scores at baseline and post-test. T-test determined whether there were significant changes in BDI-II, RRS, and Character-Digital Breadth Test scores from pre-test to post-test in the experimental and control groups.

Conditions: Depressive Symptoms
Being tested: EWM-T
Keywords: Emotional working memory training, Depressive symptoms
Medical subject headings: Depression

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

EWM-TBehavioural
This paradigm was adapted from the n-back program described by Jaeggi et al. (2009) and comprised an affective dual n-back task consisting of a series of trials, each of which simultaneously presented a face (for 500 ms) on a 4 × 4 grid on a monitor. Intermediate interval 2500ms, during which, Participants press a button to determine if the current face or position is consistent with the first n. If the position is the same, press "F"; if the face is the same, press "J"; if the face and position are not the same, do not react.
The faces used in this training were selected from the Chinese Facial Emotional Picture System (CFAPS), and 12 faces (six male and six female) with fear, anger, disgust, and sadness were selected as n-back experimental materials.

Study groups in NCT05861414
Study group	Role	What they receive
Experimental group	Experimental	21 days of emotional working memory training Receives: Behavioral: EWM-T
control group	No intervention	Not described

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) score
Beck Depression Inventory-Ⅱ is the most prevalent self-report scale assessing the presence and severity of depressive symptoms. It is a 21-item scale that was used to assess the severity of depressive symptoms in the past two weeks. The scores range from 0 to 63. A higher total score on the scale indicated more severe depressive symptoms.
Measured: one month
Ruminative Responses Scale (RRS) score
The Ruminative Response Scale (RRS) is a scale of 22 items scored on a 4-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (almost never) to 4 (almost always). It was used to assess ruminative thinking, with higher scores indicating a higher degree of ruminative symptoms. It includes three dimensions: symptom rumination, forced thinking, and introspective.
Measured: one month
The Chinese version of the Character-Digital Breadth Test score
The experimenter read aloud some combinations of characters and numbers, and after the experimenter finished speaking, the participants first stated the numbers in descending order and then the characters in descending order. For example, in the fourth pass: "8B3A," the participant needed to answer "38AB," and then the test began after the person understood the rules. Different levels (2-9 levels) had various lengths of characters and numbers. The higher the level, the longer the length. Each level contained four items. Scoring was based on the total number of correct items passed (correct number of character digit spans) and the rank of the longest items passed (longest sequence of character digit spans). Each item was completed when all items at a certain level were incorrect. The greater the number of correct items passed, the higher the level of the longest items, the greater the working memory breadth, and the stronger the working memory ability .
Measured: one month

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

11 Oct 202221 Mar 2023

First posted16 May 2023
Study start11 Oct 2022
Primary completion11 Nov 2022
Study completion21 Mar 2023

Resources

Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
Other trials for Depressive SymptomsStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design

Study type: Interventional
Phase: Phase N/A
Primary purpose: Treatment
Allocation: Randomised
Intervention model: Parallel groups
Masking: None (open label)
Enrolment: 50 participants (actual)

IDs, dates and publications

ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT05861414
Sponsor's protocol ID: 2022159
Status last verified: May 2023
First submitted: 26 Apr 2023
Last updated: 16 May 2023
Results posted: No
FDA-regulated drug: No
FDA-regulated device: No
Individual data sharing: Undecided: Do not understand Share IPD

Want to know more?

The sponsor has not listed a contact. The official record may have more details.

Talk to your doctor first and take this page with you. Only the study team can confirm whether you can join.

Questions to ask the study team

What is the study trying to find out?
What would I need to do, and how often would I visit?
Could I receive a placebo instead of the treatment?
What are the possible risks and benefits for me?
Will it cost me anything? Are travel or time paid for?
Can I keep seeing my own doctor during the study?
What happens when the study ends?

See locations

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All Depressive Symptoms trials

Study at a glance

From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 16 May 2023. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.

Official title: Intervention Effect of Emotional Working Memory Training on University Students With Depressive Symptom
ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT05861414
Acronym / sponsor ID: 2022159
Conditions: Depressive Symptoms
Keywords: Emotional working memory training, Depressive symptoms
Study type: Interventional
Recruitment status: Completed
Enrolment: 50 participants (actual)
Lead sponsor: Yu-hua WengUniversity, hospital or other
Study start: 11 Oct 2022 (actual)
Primary completion: 11 Nov 2022 (actual)
Study completion: 21 Mar 2023 (actual)
First posted: 16 May 2023 (actual)
Results: Not posted in the source record

Clinical summary

The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.

Objective: To investigate the effects of emotional working memory training (EWM-T) on depressive symptoms and rumination among university students.

Detailed description

Participants and Design The G*Power 3.1 program was used to determine the recommended sample size is 46 for the study(d=0.35,1-β＝80％,α=0.05). This anticipated effect size was based on a working memory training intervention experiment, which had a medium effect size (Unread and Koster 2014). The participants were recruited from Fujian Medical University, and 278 students volunteered to take part in the BDI-Ⅱ. Finally, 50 university students with BDI-II scores above 14 points and with no suicidal behavior were recruited as participants. They were randomly assigned to either an experimental group (n=25) or a control group (n=25). After grouping, the participants' rumination tendency and working memory ability were assessed using the Ruminative Responses Scale (RRS) and the Character-Digital Breadth Test. Subsequently, the experimental group completed twenty-one 20 to 30 minute EWM-T training sessions within one month, and the control group was not treated. A month later, the participants were assessed again for depressive symptoms, working memory ability, and rumination tendency. This study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Fujian Medical University, and all the participants provided signed informed consent. If they were found to be at risk of suicide, the experiment was terminated immediately. If the participants felt uncomfortable, they could withdraw from the experiment at any time, and psychological help was provided if they so desired.
Materials and Measures 2.1 Beck Depression Inventory-Ⅱ (BDI-Ⅱ) The BDI-II is the most prevalent self-report scale assessing the presence and severity of depressive symptoms. It is a 21-item scale that was used to assess the severity of depressive symptoms in the past two weeks. The scores range from 0 to 63. A higher total score on the scale indicated more severe depressive symptoms. (Wang 2011). 2.2 Ruminative Responses Scale (RRS) The Ruminative Response Scale (RRS) is a scale of 22 items scored on a 4-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (almost never) to 4 (almost always). It was used to assess ruminative thinking, with higher scores indicating a higher degree of ruminative symptoms. It includes three dimensions: symptom rumination, forced thinking, and introspective. The Chinese version of the RRS is suitable for evaluating the rumination thinking of Chinese university students (Han and Yang 2009). 2.3 Character-Digital Breadth Test The experimenter read aloud some combinations of characters and numbers, and after the experimenter finished speaking, the participants first stated the numbers in descending order and then the characters in descending order. For example, in the fourth pass: "8B3A," the participant needed to answer "38AB," and then the test began after the person understood the rules. Different levels (2-9 levels) had various lengths of characters and numbers. The higher the level, the longer the length. Each level contained four items. Scoring was based on the total number of correct items passed (correct number of character digit spans) and the rank of the longest items passed (longest sequence of character digit spans). Each item was completed when all items at a certain level were incorrect. The greater the number of correct items passed, the higher the level of the longest items, the greater the working memory breadth, and the stronger the working memory ability . 2.4 EWM-T This paradigm was adapted from the n-back program described by Jaeggi et al. (2009) and comprised an affective dual n-back task consisting of a series of trials, each of which simultaneously presented a face (for 500 ms) on a 4 × 4 grid on a monitor. Intermediate interval 2500ms, during which, Participants press a button to determine if the current face or position is consistent with the first n. If the position is the same, press "F"; if the face is the same, press "J"; if the face and position are not the same, do not react. Training started at n = 1; if the participants got more than 80% correct, the level of n-back increased by one in the next block. Conversely, if the participants got less than 60% correct, the level of n-back decreased by 1 in the next block. If the 2-back accuracy was greater than 80%, the next block difficulty was upgraded to 3-back; if the 3-back accuracy was less than 60%, the next block difficulty was downgraded to 2-back. The maximum value of n is 8. The 20 daily 20-30 min training sessions consisted of 20 blocks of 20+ n trials. The faces used in this training were selected from the Chinese Facial Emotional Picture System (CFAPS), and 12 faces (six male and six female) with fear, anger, disgust, and sadness were selected as n-back experimental materials.
Data Analysis An independent samples t-test was used to determine whether the experimental and control groups had varying levels of BDI-II, RRS, and Character-Digital Breadth Test scores at baseline and post-test. T-test determined whether there were significant changes in BDI-II, RRS, and Character-Digital Breadth Test scores from pre-test to post-test in the experimental and control groups.

Study design

Primary purpose: Treatment
Allocation: Randomised
Intervention model: Parallel groups
Masking: None (open label)
Number of arms: 2

Arm	Type	Receives
Experimental group	Experimental	Behavioral: EWM-T21 days of emotional working memory training
control group	No intervention	–

Who may qualify

Sex: All
Healthy volunteers: Not accepted
Age groups: Child, Adult, Older adult

Key inclusion criteria (1 listed)

Study from Fujian Medical University, BDI-II scores above 14 points.

Key exclusion criteria (1 listed)

no suicidal behavior

Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.

Interventions

Intervention	Type	Arms
EWM-TThis paradigm was adapted from the n-back program described by Jaeggi et al. (2009) and comprised an affective dual n-back task consisting of a series of trials, each of which simultaneously presented a face (for 500 ms) on a 4 × 4 grid on a monitor. Intermediate interval 2500ms, during which, Participants press a button to determine if the current face or position is consistent with the first n. If the position is the same, press "F"; if the face is the same, press "J"; if the face and position are not the same, do not react. The faces used in this training were selected from the Chinese Facial Emotional Picture System (CFAPS), and 12 faces (six male and six female) with fear, anger, disgust, and sadness were selected as n-back experimental materials.	Behavioural	Experimental group

Primary outcome

Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) score
Time frame: one month
Beck Depression Inventory-Ⅱ is the most prevalent self-report scale assessing the presence and severity of depressive symptoms. It is a 21-item scale that was used to assess the severity of depressive symptoms in the past two weeks. The scores range from 0 to 63. A higher total score on the scale indicated more severe depressive symptoms.
Ruminative Responses Scale (RRS) score
Time frame: one month
The Ruminative Response Scale (RRS) is a scale of 22 items scored on a 4-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (almost never) to 4 (almost always). It was used to assess ruminative thinking, with higher scores indicating a higher degree of ruminative symptoms. It includes three dimensions: symptom rumination, forced thinking, and introspective.
The Chinese version of the Character-Digital Breadth Test score
Time frame: one month
The experimenter read aloud some combinations of characters and numbers, and after the experimenter finished speaking, the participants first stated the numbers in descending order and then the characters in descending order. For example, in the fourth pass: "8B3A," the participant needed to answer "38AB," and then the test began after the person understood the rules. Different levels (2-9 levels) had various lengths of characters and numbers. The higher the level, the longer the length. Each level contained four items. Scoring was based on the total number of correct items passed (correct number of character digit spans) and the rank of the longest items passed (longest sequence of character digit spans). Each item was completed when all items at a certain level were incorrect. The greater the number of correct items passed, the higher the level of the longest items, the greater the working memory breadth, and the stronger the working memory ability .

Results and safety

The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.

Research links

Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 16 May 2023.
Individual participant dataSharing planned: Undecided. Do not understand Share IPD

Related trials for Depressive Symptoms

Not yet recruiting
Preventive and Personalized Digital Emotion Regulation Skills Intervention to Reduce Depression and Anxiety in Youths With Adverse Childhood Experiences
Adverse Childhood Experience, Depression / Major Depressive Disorder
Recruiting
Targeting Network Dysfunction in Apathy of Late-life Depression Using Digital Therapeutics
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Referral and contact

AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part. This study is not recruiting at the moment.

The record lists no contact. Use the official record to reach the sponsor.

1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A study testing EWM-T in people with Depressive Symptoms, run by Yu-hua Weng at 1 site in China.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 1 inclusion and 1 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 16 May 2023. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 1 site in China. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

Are results available for this study?

The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) score (time frame: one month). The study lists 3 primary outcomes in all. It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?

On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT05861414.

Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 16 May 2023.