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Sexual Compulsive Behavior DisorderADISEXNCT07102303

Effectiveness Controlled Study of an Online Group Treatment Program for Cybersex Addiction /Online Sexual Compulsivity

A study testing Online Group Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Online Individual Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) in people with Sexual Compulsive Behavior Disorder and Cybersex Addiction, run by Universitat Jaume I at 2 sites in Spain.

Completed

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

Official record
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Trial summary

The goal of this clinical trial is to study the effectiveness of an online group therapy to treat people with cybersex addiction or online sexual compulsivity. It will compare group therapy to individual therapy. It uses cognitive behavioral therapy, a therapy that aims to change thoughts and behaviors. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Any age
What is being tested?
Online Group Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Online Individual Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Could I receive a placebo?
No, everyone receives an active treatment
How many people
86 participants
Where
2 sitesSpain
Study dates
1 Jan 2018to 31 Dec 2025
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

  • online sexual compulsive behaviors, and may or may not also have other offline sexual compulsive behaviors
  • any gender or sexual orientation
  • minimum score of 9-18 points on the Internet Sex Screening Test (ISST) of Delmonico (1997) in the Spanish adaptation of Ballester, Gil, Gómez and Gil (2010)

Who cannot join

  • coocurrence of psychotic symptoms, cognitive impairment, or other serious mental conditions

Trial locations and contacts

2 sites in 1 country.

Spain2 sites

  • Salusex center. University Jaume I of Castellón

    Castellon, Castellón, 12071

  • University Jaume I

    Castellon, Castellón

Other trials in Spain

About this study

Official title: Controlled Study on the Effectiveness of an Online Group Treatment Intervention Program for Cybersex Addiction / Online Sexual Compulsivity: Comparison With an Individual Program and a Wait List Control

The goal of this clinical trial is to study the effectiveness of an online group therapy to treat people with cybersex addiction or online sexual compulsivity. It will compare group therapy to individual therapy. It uses cognitive behavioral therapy, a therapy that aims to change thoughts and behaviors. In this case, the therapy will train participants in coping strategies that allow them to control their sexual impulses. The main questions it aims to answer are:

Is online group therapy effective to treat cybersex addiction/online sexual compulsivity? How does group therapy compare to individual therapy?

Read more

Researchers will compare the results of participants in group therapy to those in individual therapy and those who receive no treatment.

Participants will:

Attend evaluation sessions Attend therapy sessions once per week for 12 weeks Keep a weekly diary of their sexual behavior Complete follow-up surveys 1 week, 3 months, 6 months, 9 months, and 12 months after treatment

Being tested
Online Group Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Online Individual Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Keywords
Cybersex addiction, e-health, sexual compulsivity, effectiveness, online sex addiction, group therapy
Medical subject headings
Compulsive Sexual Behavior Disorder

What participants receive

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

  • Online Group Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT)Behavioural

    12-session group online CBT treatment for online sexual compulsivity/cybersex addiction. Cognitive-behavioral psychological treatment program applied online and in a group format. The program consists of twelve sessions of approximately 2,5 hour's duration and weekly frequency 1. Psychoeducational module and motivational interviewing. 2. Environmental planning, stimulus control 3. Beginning of training in emotional self-regulation techniques. 4. Cognitive errors and cognitive discussion. 5. Self-talk, thought traps, responsibility vs. guilt and "backpack" of coping resources. 6. Self-esteem, stigma and life goals 7. "Backpack" of coping resources, mindfulness and slow breathing training for anxiety 8. Stress coping techniques 9. Lifestyle 10. and 11. Reduction of stimulus control and addressing previously unaddressed relevant issues. 12. Relapse prevention

  • Online Individual Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT)Behavioural

    12-session individual and online CBT treatment for online sexual compulsivity/cybersex addiction. Cognitive-behavioral psychological treatment program applied online and individually. The program consists of twelve sessions of approximately one hour's duration and weekly frequency 1. Psychoeducational module and motivational interviewing. 2. Environmental planning, stimulus control 3. Beginning of training in emotional self-regulation techniques. 4. Cognitive errors and cognitive discussion. 5. Self-talk, thought traps, responsibility vs. guilt and "backpack" of coping resources. 6. Self-esteem, stigma and life goals 7. "Backpack" of coping resources, mindfulness and slow breathing training for anxiety 8. Stress coping techniques 9. Lifestyle 10. and 11. Reduction of stimulus control and addressing previously unaddressed relevant issues. 12. Relapse prevention

Study groups in NCT07102303
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
Group InterventionExperimental12 session group CBT treament
Receives: Behavioral: Online Group Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT)
Wait List ControlNo interventionWait list control, 3 months on wait list with no treatment
Individual InterventionActive comparator12 session CBT treament
Receives: Behavioral: Online Individual Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

What is being measured

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

  1. Semi-Structured Clinical Interview for the assessment of Compulsive Sexual Behavior (SSCI-CSB) (Castro-Calvo et al., in review)

    This is a pioneering interview that allows a criterial evaluation of the patient. It asks about the different types of online and offline sexual behavior, both in terms of whether or not they are performed, as well as the percentage of sexual behavior they represent, the weekly time spent, the weekly orgasms obtained through this behavior, the discomfort it produces and the degree of control over it. From there, a series of questions related to 16 symptoms grouped around 9 criteria are developed. Then the onset, evolution, clinical course and search for therapeutic help are explored, and on the final sheet all the information can be summarized with the novelty that the diagnosis can be established according to the criteria of three classifications of three different authors (Carnes, Goodman and Kafka).

    Measured: Baseline; Upon treatment completion, an average of 12 weeks; Follow-up at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months

  2. Internet Sex Screening Test (ISST) Delmonico (1997)

    Spanish adaptation by Ballester, Gil, Gómez and Gil (2010). The original version includes 25 true/false items and measures online sexual behavior. Validating the original instrument with general population (through online self-administration), exploratory factor analysis revealed five factors (Delmonico and Miller, 2003): Online Sexual Compulsivity, Online Social Sexual Behavior, Online Solitary Sexual Behavior; Online Sexual Expense; and Online Sexual Behavior Interest. In addition, it includes two single-item scales. The first assesses the use of a computer outside the home for sexual purposes and the second explores access to illegal sexual material. The remaining items do not form part of any single factor. Their reliability ranged from 0.51 to 0.86. After a process of translation and adaptation of the questionnaire following the international guidelines established for this purpose (Balluerka et al., 2007; Hambleton et al., 2005)

    Measured: Baseline; Upon treatment completion, an average of 12 weeks; Follow-up at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months

  3. Hypersexual Behavior Inventory (Reid, Garos & Carpenter, 2011)

    This 19-item instrument with Likert-type response format (1=Never / 5=Many times) was designed to assess the three basic dimensions of hypersexuality. As noted in the introduction, the HI has been validated only in a male clinical population. In this sample, the resulting factor structure replicated the criteria under which the HI was designed. First, a factor called "Coping" (items 1, 3, 6, 8, 13, 16 and 18), which would reflect the use of sex as a means of controlling negative emotional states; secondly, another factor, "Control" (items 2, 4, 7, 10, 11, 12, 15 and 17), whose content would denote deficits in controlling sexual thoughts, impulses or behaviors; and the last factor, "Consequences" (items 5, 9, 14 and 19), which would explore persistence in sexual behavior despite the negative consequences derived. The authors obtained a high correlation between them. Reliability for each scale ranged from 0.89 to 0.95.

    Measured: Baseline; Upon treatment completion, an average of 12 weeks; Follow-up at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months

  4. Sexual Compulsivity Scale (Kalichman & Rompa, 1995)

    Spanish version adapted and validated for application in Spain (in preparation). This questionnaire will be used as a screening instrument from which a group of participants with sexual compulsivity problems and another group of similar number, sex, age and sexual orientation without this type of problem will be selected. The cut-off point to be used will be the same as that used by the author of the scale, the 80th percentile. Internal consistency of 0.84.

    Measured: Baseline; Upon treatment completion, an average of 12 weeks; Follow-up at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months

  5. Compulsive Sexual Behavior Inventory (CSBI) (Coleman, Miner, Ohlerking & Raymond, 2001)

    28-item self-report scale that assesses the severity of symptoms of sexual compulsivity. This questionnaire is of interest because it not only includes a global measure of sexual compulsivity but also the type of compulsive paraphilic behavior (exhibitionism, sadism, phone calls, fetishism...) or non-paraphilic behavior (compulsive cruising, compulsive fixation on an unattainable partner, compulsive search for new experiences and partners, multiple sexual partners, sexual compulsivity within a specific relationship and compulsive autoeroticism).

    Measured: Baseline; Upon treatment completion, an average of 12 weeks; Follow-up at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months

  6. Cognitive and Behavioral Outcomes of Sexual Behavior Scale (CBOSB) (McBride, Reece & Perera, 2006)

    Following the list of consequences that may result from sexual compulsivity identified by the Society for the Advancement of the Sexual Health and classified into six domains, the authors developed this scale that records both the individual's concern about the consequences that may result from his or her sexual behavior and the fact that he or she is actually experiencing such consequences. The six domains (economic, legal, physical, psychological, spiritual and social) were identified by the National Council on Sexual Addiction and Compulsivity, NCSAC (2004) and are translated into a total of 20 items referring to cognitive aspects evaluated on a scale of 0 to 4 (never to always) and another 16 dichotomous response items that evaluate the behavioral consequences.

    Measured: Baseline; Upon treatment completion, an average of 12 weeks; Follow-up at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months

Secondary outcomes (9)

  1. Internet Addiction Diagnostic Questionnaire (IADQ; Young, 1998)

    Questionnaire with 20 Likert-type items (rarely/occasionally/frequently/often/always). In its original version, self-administered online, it has six factors and the subscales have shown a Cronbach's alpha internal consistency between 0.54 and 0.82 (Widyanto and McMurran, 2004). Its reliability (internal consistency) in a Spanish sample of young university students is 0.910 (Salmerón, Ballester, Gómez and Gil, 2009). This questionnaire has also been recently validated by Puerta-Cortés et al. (2012) in a Colombian population.

    Measured: Baseline; Upon treatment completion, an average of 12 weeks; Follow-up at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months

  2. Adapted Structured Clinical Interview for DSM, Patient Version) & SCID-II (Structured Clinical Interview for Axis II Disorders) (First, Gibbon, Spitzer, Williams & Smith)

    Adaptation of SCID-P (Structured Clinical Interview for DSM, Patient version) and SCID-II (Structured Clinical Interview for Axis II Disorders) interviews (First, Gibbon, Spitzer, Williams and Smith) in a reduced version to assess psychopathological comorbidity. Especially mood disorders, anxiety disorders especially obsessive-compulsive disorder, substance use disorder, non-toxic addictions, eating disorders, personality disorders especially borderline and obsessive-compulsive disorder, sexual dysfunctions, paraphilias and other impulse control disorders.

    Measured: Baseline; Upon treatment completion, an average of 12 weeks; Follow-up at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months

  3. Revised Sexual Sensation Seeking Scale (Kalichman & Rompa, 1995)

    Scale evaluates one of the constructs most related to sexual compulsivity and sexual risk behaviors, sexual sensation seeking. It consists of 11 items that are answered following a 4-point Likert scale (not at all to strongly agree). Internal consistency of 0.87.

    Measured: Baseline; Upon treatment completion, an average of 12 weeks; Follow-up at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months

  4. Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (1979)

    This questionnaire contains 10 items and provides qualitative and quantitative information on self-esteem. The high levels of validity and reliability of this scale (Cronbach's Alpha of 0.87 and test-retest reliability of 0.85) have been widely documented (Martín-Albo, Núñez, Navarro, \& Grijalvo, 2007; Vázquez, Jiménez, \& Vázquez-Morejón, 2004).

    Measured: Baseline; Upon treatment completion, an average of 12 weeks; Follow-up at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months

  5. Hospital Anxiety and Depresión Scale (Zigmond & Snaith, 1983)

    Contains 14 statements referring to symptoms of depression and anxiety, whose frequency or intensity has to be evaluated by means of a 4-point Likert scale (scores range from 0 to 3). Of the 14 items that make up the scale, 7 evaluate depression, appearing intercalary. The assessment of depression is basically limited to symptoms of anhedonia, excluding the assessment of somatic symptoms. A score above 11 points is considered as indicative of anxious or depressive symptomatology, between 8 and 10 points the symptomatology is doubtful and between 0 and 7 is considered as absence of symptomatology.

    Measured: Baseline; Upon treatment completion, an average of 12 weeks; Follow-up at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months

  6. Psychological Wellbeing Scale (Ryff, 1989)

    The Ryff well-being scale assesses 6 dimensions of psychological well-being: autonomy, mastery of the environment, personal growth, positive relationships with others, purpose in life and self-acceptance. In the adaptation used, each dimension is evaluated with a thermometer, in which the patient must quantify (from 0 to 100) the extent to which they usually feel this way.

    Measured: Baseline; Upon treatment completion, an average of 12 weeks; Follow-up at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months

  7. Quality of Life Index (Mezzich, Cohen & Ruiperez, 1999)

    Assesses 10 important aspects for measuring quality of life: physical well-being, psychological well-being, self-care and independent functioning, occupational functioning, interpersonal functioning, social-emotional support, community and service support, personal fulfillment, spiritual fulfillment, global perception of quality of life.

    Measured: Baseline; Upon treatment completion, an average of 12 weeks; Follow-up at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months

  8. Expectations of Change Scale (adapted from the Borkovec and Nau Inventory, 1972)

    The original scale was designed to assess patients' credibility and expectations of improvement in therapy. In the present adaptation, after having received information about the online treatment to be received, the aim is to measure the person's expectations of change with respect to this treatment. It consists of 7 items, rated on a scale of 0 - 10 (Not at all - Very much).

    Measured: Baseline

  9. Program Satisfaction Scale (adapted from the Borkovec and Nau Inventory, 1972)

    After having received the treatment, it measures the person's satisfaction with the treatment in terms of liking, treatment logic, recommendation, usefulness and discomfort. It consists of seven items, rated on a scale of 0 - 10 (Not at all - Very much).

    Measured: Upon treatment completion, an average of 12 weeks

Timeline

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

  1. First posted3 Aug 2025
  2. Study start1 Jan 2018
  3. Primary completion31 Dec 2025
  4. Study completion31 Dec 2025

Resources

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
Non-randomised
Intervention model
Single group
Masking
Double blind
Who is masked
Participant, Care provider
Enrolment
86 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT07102303
Sponsor's protocol ID
CD/13/2022
Acronym
ADISEX
Status last verified
Apr 2026
First submitted
21 Jul 2025
Last updated
6 May 2026
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
Individual data sharing
No: Individual participant data are subject to strict data protection measures by the sponsoring center and cannot be shared with other researchers.

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A study testing Online Group Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Online Individual Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) in people with Sexual Compulsive Behavior Disorder and Cybersex Addiction, run by Universitat Jaume I at 2 sites in Spain.

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 3 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 6 May 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 2 sites in Spain. 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?

Semi-Structured Clinical Interview for the assessment of Compulsive Sexual Behavior (SSCI-CSB) (Castro-Calvo et al., in review) (time frame: Baseline; Upon treatment completion, an average of 12 weeks; Follow-up at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months). The study lists 6 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 NCT07102303.

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 6 May 2026.

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