Chris Barker

University College London | UCL · Department of Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology

Objectives Mindfulness meditation has both spiritual and secular foundations. Drawing on Jerome Frank’s concept of a healing “myth,” this study investigated the relative influence of spiritual and secular inductions to a brief mindfulness-based intervention. We hypothesized that, compared to narrower spiritual or secular presentations, an integrate...

Aim: The moderate association between therapeutic alliance (TA) and psychological therapy outcome is well established. Historically, the field has not focused on people with a severe mental illness. This is the first review to conduct a meta-analysis of associations between TA and therapeutic engagement as well as outcome in psychological therapy...

Aims: Many clinical psychologists have ventured beyond therapeutic and assessment roles to undertake public policy work. However, little research has systematically examined clinical psychologists’ roles in policy work and the implications of such work for the profession. This qualitative study examined the influences, processes, skills and knowled...

Background and objectives: Perfectionism is a transdiagnostic process that has been associated with a range of psychopathology and also with other transdiagnostic processes. We have previously shown that guided internet-based cognitive behavioural therapy (ICBT) can reduce symptoms of dysfunctional perfectionism, however, no impact was observed on...

This study examined the effectiveness of a novel cancer bereavement group. Twenty-seven participants attended a six- session cancer bereavement therapeutic group. Data were collected at baseline, intervention completion, and three-month follow-up. Grief intensity and symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and anxiety were red...

Purpose: Clinical guidelines emphasise the central role of family members in supporting people with bipolar disorder. However, there has been little focus on the challenges family members face in supporting their relative. This qualitative study explored the challenges of providing support to a relative with bipolar disorder, and how family member...

Background Evidence suggests an unmet need for provision of psychological interventions in inpatient psychiatric settings. However, inpatient wards can present a challenging environment in which to implement interventions. The authors developed the Emotional Coping Skills workbook, a psychosocial intervention designed to overcome these challenges a...

Aims Clinical guidelines recommend psychological interventions be offered to caregivers of people with bipolar disorder. However, there is little clarity about the efficacy of such interventions. This review examined the efficacy of psychological interventions in improving caregiver-focused outcomes, including burden, psychological symptoms and kno...

PurposeContinuous observation of psychiatric inpatients aims to protect those who pose an acute risk of harm to self or others, but involves intrusive privacy restrictions. Initiating, conducting and ending continuous observation requires complex decision-making about keeping patients safe whilst protecting their privacy. There is little published...

Purpose Many homeless people have significant levels of early adverse experiences and consequent mental health difficulties. The purpose of this paper is to examine the experiences of residents and staff living and working in a psychologically informed environment (PIE), a new model of hostel for homeless people which aims to update and make more f...

Police officers who work with victims of rape and sexual assault are exposed to severely traumatic material. This study aimed to investigate whether these specialist officers had developed compassion fatigue, secondary traumatic stress, and burnout, and whether these variables were associated with trait and situational empathy, an important factor...

Objectives: Brief guided parent-delivered cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) has been developed to meet the demand for non-intensive interventions for children with anxiety disorders, and initial trials have shown it to be effective for children with a range of anxiety disorders. This study examined outcomes 3-5 years post-treatment. Design: A lo...

This article aims to explicate the particular aspects of reflexivity that arise in a research project when the researcher has personally experienced the condition that is the topic of the research. These issues are illustrated in the context of one specific study, in which the researcher was conducting qualitative research on an intervention for Ty...

Background: Depression and anxiety are common, often comorbid, conditions, and Internet support groups for them are well used. However, little rigorous research has been conducted on the outcome of these groups. Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of an Internet support group in reducing depression and anxiety, and increasing socia...

Contingency in interpersonal relationships is associated with the development of secure attachment and trust, whereas paranoia arises from the overattribution of negative intentions. We used a new virtual reality paradigm to experimentally investigate the impact of contingent behavior on trust along the paranoia continuum. Sixty-one healthy partici...

Contingency in interpersonal relationships is associated with the development of secure attachment and trust, whereas paranoia arises from the overattribution of negative intentions. We used a new virtual reality paradigm to experimentally investigate the impact of contingent behavior on trust along the paranoia continuum. Sixty-one healthy partici...

This mixed-method study assessed the impact of an internet-based, self-management intervention (“HeLP-Diabetes”) on the psychological well-being of adults with type 2 diabetes. Nineteen participants were recruited from 3 general practices. Data were collected at baseline and at 6 weeks follow-up. Access to HeLP-Diabetes was associated with a signif...

Aim: Co-morbid personality disorder (PD) is associated with poorer outcomes in psychosis patients, but it is not known whether these patterns are present at illness onset. This study investigated the prevalence of co-morbid PD in clients of an Early Intervention in Psychosis Service (EIPS) and compared key worker engagement and service use between...

Trauma-focused cognitive behaviour therapy is effective in treating posttraumatic stress disorder but non-response rates range between 25% and 50%. Results of previous research on patient characteristics predicting outcome are inconsistent and mainly focused on demographic and diagnostic variables. This study examined whether behavioural predictors...

Background: Excluded young people, especially those affected by street gangs, often have complex unmet needs and high levels of health and social inequalities. This paper outlines the development of Music & Change, an innovative and comprehensive intervention accessible to young people, which aimed to holistically meet the mental health and other...

Alcohol consumption by young professional women is increasing. Whilst the media and public health campaigns have condemned this increase, societal attitudes and advertising discourses frame it as a display of ‘power femininity’. This qualitative study explored young professional women's ‘relationship with alcohol’: why they drank and how they felt...

Objectives. This mixed-method study aimed to explore the initial process of engagement with an online support group (OSG) for depression. Method. Fifteen British National Health Service patients experiencing depression who had not previously used an OSG for depression were offered facilitated access to an existing peer-to-peer OSG for 10 weeks. Pre...

A one group pre-post test design investigated the impact of identifying character strengths using the Values In Action Inventory of Strengths (VIA-IS) with individuals with early psychosis (N = 29). Post-test improvements in positive affect and cognitive performance were observed. Neither self-esteem nor self-efficacy improved. The technique appear...

Background: Caring for a friend or relative with dementia can be burdensome and stressful, and puts carers at increased risk of physical and psychological problems. A number of psychosocial interventions, some delivered by computer, have been developed to support carers. This review evaluates the outcomes of computer-mediated interventions. Method...

Background: The well-being of informal carers of people with dementia is an important public health issue. Caring for an elderly relative with dementia may be burdensome and stressful, and can negatively affect the carer's social, family, and professional life. The combination of loss, the physical demands of caregiving, prolonged distress, and bi...

Background: Environmental factors have been associated with psychosis but there is little qualitative research looking at how the ongoing interaction between individual and environment maintains psychotic symptoms. Aims: The current study investigates how people with persecutory delusions interpret events in a virtual neutral social environment...

The Internet enables people to help each other out with their problems, regardless of time or geographical location. Countless online forums or support groups exist, including for psychological problems. Objective: This study examined the efficacy of an online support group (OSG) in reducing depression and anxiety, and increasing perceived social s...

Objective: Despite the prevalence of one-to-one peer support programmes for people with cancer, little research has examined its impact on the supporters themselves. This qualitative study examined a telephone-delivered one-to-one peer support intervention for women with gynaecological cancer, focussing on supporters' subjective experiences of ben...

Peer support is much valued by cancer patients. Previous research has focused on support groups, typically for women with breast cancer; little has addressed one-to-one support. This qualitative study examined a telephone-delivered one-to-one peer support intervention for women with gynaecological cancer, focusing on recipients' experiences of proc...

Male volunteers entered an immersive virtual reality that depicted a party, where they were approached by a lone virtual woman who initiated a conversation. The goal was to study how socially anxious and socially confident men would react to this event. Interest focused on whether the socially anxious participants would exhibit sustained anxiety du...

The Pre- and Post-Exposure Questionnaires in Relation to the SPAI. (PDF)

Correlation Coefficient Between the Sum of a Set of Random Variables, and the Sum of a Subset of that Set. (PDF)

An example of a complete dialog. (PDF)

A video of one complete experiment after the baseline period. (WMV)

A Selection of Responses to the Interview Question “How much was your behaviour like being in a party?" (PDF)

This paper examines whether the psychological sequelae of rape relate to rape case attrition by leading police to see the victim as less reliable. A mixed methods approach with two linked studies, one qualitative and one quantitative, was used. In Study 1, the qualitative study, interviews with 12 specialist police officers were analysed using Fram...

• Methodological Approaches to Community-Based Research offers innovative research tools that are most effective for understanding social problems in general and change in complex person-environment systems at the community level. Methodological pluralism and mixed-methods research are the overarching themes in this groundbreaking edited volume, as...

This exploratory study investigated whether rape victims’ subjective perceptions of whether to proceed with legal action were associated with their experience of disclosing to the police during their initial interview. Specifically, the study investigated associations between symptoms of PTSD, shame and self-blame post-rape, subjective perceptions...

An intergenerational community intervention based on contact theory and using ‘photovoice’ methods was designed to change negative age-group stereotypes and promote sense of community. A focused ethnographic approach was adopted. Participants were 18 young people and 13 older adults. Data from focus groups, carried out with each generation separate...

Background: There is growing evidence of the impact of post-migration factors on the mental health of refugees. To date, few UK studies have been conducted. Aims: The study investigated the relationship between trauma, post-migration problems, social support and the mental health of refugees and asylum seekers. Methods: Refugees and asylum seekers...

There is growing evidence of the impact of post-migration factors on the mental health of refugees. To date, few UK studies have been conducted. The study investigated the relationship between trauma, post-migration problems, social support and the mental health of refugees and asylum seekers. Refugees and asylum seekers (n = 47) were recruited mai...

Mental health problems are common in primary care and most are managed solely by the GP. Patients strive to understand their mental health problems, and facilitating patients' understanding may be important in their care, yet little is known about this process in GP consultations. To explore how patients' understanding of common mental health probl...

IntroductionSome popular approaches to qualitative researchHow do you choose a method?Some additional questionsConclusion References

This chapter systematically reviews empirical studies on whether participating in mutual help groups for mental health problems leads to improved psychological and social functioning. It first outlines how mutual help groups fit into the broader picture of mental health self-help initiatives, and discusses some issues involved in conducting effecti...

This study investigated the relative influence of person and training factors on preference for three common therapeutic orientations--cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT), psychodynamic therapy, and systemic therapy--in 142 U.K. trainee clinical psychologists. Consistent with previous research, preferences for therapeutic orientation were related t...

This study investigated which factors are associated with the therapeutic relationship in Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy for psychosis (CBTp). Measures were taken between sessions two to nine in 24 therapist-client dyads. Clients and therapists completed the Working Alliance Inventory and measures of client (gender, age, ethnicity, positive and nega...

This qualitative study examined clinical psychology trainees' experiences of using, or not using, therapist self-disclosure and their experience of training and supervision on this issue. Fourteen trainees were interviewed and their accounts analyzed using interpretative phenomenological analysis, yielding nine themes organized into two domains. Th...

Psychological therapies are effective treatments for common mental health problems, but access is limited. GPs face difficult decisions as to whom to refer, but little is known about this decision-making process. To explore GPs' accounts of decisions to refer, or not refer, patients for psychological therapy. A qualitative study, using a matched-pa...

Homeless young people in the UK are a vulnerable group: their levels of psychological problems, physical ill health and violent victimisation exceed those of their housed counterparts. This qualitative study aimed to examine homeless young people's views about seeking psychological help for their problems. Semi-structured interviews were undertaken...

This study set up and evaluated an online mutual support group for college students with psychological problems. In a 2 x 2 pre-post design, participants (N = 238) were randomly assigned to either the Information Only condition, giving access to a Web site containing information about student problems, or to the Support Group condition, giving acce...

This paper reviews empirical studies on whether participating in mutual help groups for people with mental health problems leads to improved psychological and social functioning. To be included, studies had to satisfy four sets of criteria, covering: (1) characteristics of the group, (2) target problems, (3) outcome measures, and (4) research desig...

Virtual reality (VR) has begun to be used to research the key psychotic symptom of paranoia. The initial studies have been with non-clinical individuals and individuals at high risk of psychosis. The next step is to develop the technology for the understanding and treatment of clinical delusions. Therefore the present study investigated the accepta...

This qualitative study explored the process of help-seeking and therapy among clients with religious or spiritual beliefs. Ten clients who were currently in, or had recently finished, therapy were interviewed. Participants reported using their religious or spiritual beliefs to cope with their psychological problems before and during therapy. Prior...

Virtual Learner Responses and Shocks (0.07 MB DOC)

Event Related Heart-rate in bpm for (a) VC and (b) HC in intervals Prior-shock and Reaction. N = 15 RR intervals were used for each segment (0.06 MB DOC)

The video sequences show extracts from the experiment in the Visible Condition. Due to ethical constraints we are unable to supply the original video material of the participants in the actual experiments. These therefore show one of the authors in his first exposure to the experiment. They are for illustrative purposes only. Movie S1 shows the eve...

This shows the events leading up to the 6th shock, the one where the Learner refuses to answer for the first time. (4.77 MB MPG)

All supporting figures and tables, and movie descriptions. (0.27 MB DOC)

Significance levels (P) for sign tests for differences between event related heart rates before and after the shocks for a range of RR Intervals N (0.05 MB DOC)

Significance levels (P) for sign tests for differences between event related heart rate variability before and after the shocks over a range of different numbers of beats, N (0.05 MB DOC)

This includes the events at the final two questions. (8.62 MB MPG)

Comparison of skin conductance waveform averages for the VC (continuous curves) and HC (dashed curves). The mean waveforms are constructed as in Fig. 2 and Figure S1. All individuals have had their mean baseline SCL subtracted as before. 95% Normal (non-simultaneous) confidence intervals are shown. If we take any point in time then the individual v...

Log-Linear Regression of Number of SCRs Around the Shocks on a Number of Independent and Explanatory Variables (0.03 MB DOC)

Normal Regression of Mean Amplitude of SCRs Around the Shocks on a Number of Independent and Explanatory Variables (0.02 MB DOC)

This includes events leading to the final two questions. (10.26 MB MPG)

Skin conductance waveform average around the shock times for the Hidden Condition. Event triggered average of 20 s segments of skin conductance waveform, the events being the times when buttons that gave an electric shock to the virtual character were pressed. The mean was calculated over each shock and each person in the HC (n = 220). Each wavefor...

Event Related Heart-Rate Variability from N = 8 beats for (a) VC and (b) HC in intervals Prior-shock and Reaction (0.06 MB DOC)

This paper examines a necessary condition for successful exploitation of a virtual environment (VE) in therapeutic intervention for fear of public speaking. The condition is that clients experience a degree of anxiety in the VE that is similar to what they would have been expected to experience in a similar real world setting. We refer to this as a...

The vast majority of patients with psychological problems are seen solely by their GP, but little is known about patients' perspectives regarding the variety of consultation skills that may be used in routine GP consultations with these patients. To identify which aspects of GP consultations patients presenting with psychological problems experienc...

This qualitative, phenomenological study examined how partners attempted to support a depressed spouse and how each member of the couple experienced the support process. Participants were nine people who were or had been depressed, who were interviewed jointly with their partners on two separate occasions. The interviews, analysed using interpretat...

Stanley Milgram's 1960s experimental findings that people would administer apparently lethal electric shocks to a stranger at the behest of an authority figure remain critical for understanding obedience. Yet, due to the ethical controversy that his experiments ignited, it is nowadays impossible to carry out direct experimental studies in this area...

Many community psychologists adhere to a methodological pluralist orientation to research; however, it is often unclear what such a position means in practice. This paper draws out the practical implications of methodological pluralism for community research. It proposes four sets of criteria for how research might be appraised under a pluralistic...

The authors take the study of social support to a microlevel of analysis as they examine partners' responses during conversations of helping interactions. Using a narrative approach, they untangle partners' communication processes as they cope with serious stresses, including breast cancer and the transition to parenthood. Their study provides a un...

While many UK higher education institutions have websites offering information and advice on common student problems, interactive online support is less common. This article describes a project developing internet-based mutual support for students experiencing psychological problems at University College London.

The objectives were, first, to determine whether adherence to malaria prophylaxis could be predicted by (i) health beliefs specified by the Health Belief Model and the Theory of Planned Behaviour, and (ii) communication during the consultation in a travel clinic; and secondly, to examine the impact of the consultation in changing travellers' health...

Psychotherapy interactions and social support conversations have many similarities, as well as some important differences. Researchers studying these two manifestations of psychological helping--often known as formal and informal helping--usually apply a separate set of concepts and methods to each and tend to locate their work in separate bodies o...

This paper describes an experiment to assess the anxiety responses of people giving 5 min. presentations to virtual audiences consisting of eight male avatars. There were three different types of audience behavior: an emotionally neutral audience that remained static throughout the talk, a positive audience that exhibited friendly and appreciative...

This study examined how empathy is communicated and experienced in the helping interactions of couples expecting their first baby. Eighteen couples took part in a semistructured communication task, and then, in a tape-assisted recall session, identified helper responses that were high and low in empathy. Qualitative data analysis yielded five theme...

Can virtual reality exposure therapy be used to treat people with social phobia? To answer this question it is vital to known if people will respond to virtual humans (avatars) in a virtual social setting in the same way they would to real humans. If someone is extremely anxious with real people, will they also be anxious when faced with simulated...

This study examined what parents of children with disabilities and special needs found helpful about belonging to mutual support groups. Quantitative data (based on 56 parents from 6 groups) indicated that members found the groups very helpful and were very satisfied with the support they received from their groups; they also described the groups a...

This study examined what parents of children with disabilities and special needs found helpful about belonging to mutual support groups. Quantitative data (based on 56 parents from 6 groups) indicated that members found the groups very helpful and were very satisfied with the support they received from their groups; they also described the groups a...

This analogue study examined the relationship between therapists' resolution of therapeutic alliance ruptures and their attachment styles. Seventy-seven clinical psychology graduate student therapists responded to videotaped statements made by role-played patients displaying four different attachment styles (preoccupied, dismissing, fearful, and se...

The majority of patients with common emotional or psychological problems are treated solely by general practitioners (GPs). Such treatment frequently includes some form of psychological management within the consultation, whether limited to listening and discussion or involving more specific techniques. This paper sets out a research agenda for the...

General practitioners' (GPs') treatment of patients with common emotional problems often includes some form of psychological management within the consultation. Such psychological management may be limited to listening and discussion or may also include more specific psychological approaches, such as use of counselling, problem-solving, or cognitiv...

This single case study aimed to illustrate help-intended communication in couples, in particular how a husband and wife attempted to help each other with adjusting to the husband's recent myocardial infarction. The study employed a semi-structured communication task to gather samples of the couple's helping interactions: the couple had two conversa...

This study examined how women with breast cancer perceived different styles of peer helping. Forty recently diagnosed breast cancer patients evaluated three audiotaped conversations between a breast cancer patient and an (ex-patient) volunteer helper; the conversations differed in terms of the empathy and self-disclosure offered by the helper. The...