Abstract Objective This randomized controlled study investigated the effect of the Cogmed Working Memory Training (CWMT) program on hair-pulling severity and working memory in trichotillomania (TTM). Methods 36 adults with… Click to show full abstract
Abstract Objective This randomized controlled study investigated the effect of the Cogmed Working Memory Training (CWMT) program on hair-pulling severity and working memory in trichotillomania (TTM). Methods 36 adults with TTM were assigned to CWMT or active control (25 sessions, 5 weeks). Data from intention-to-treat [ITT] (CWMT: N = 21; control: N = 15) and per-protocol (CWMT: N = 16; control: N = 13) samples were analyzed. The primary and secondary outcomes were the totals on the Massachusetts General Hospital Hair-Pulling Scale (MGH-HPS) and the Digit Span (Backward) subtest of the Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale. Assessments occurred at baseline, at 5 weeks, and 3 months post-training. A mixed-model repeated measures ANOVA was done, with the interaction of group x time as primary effect of investigation. Results Regarding hair-pulling severity, the interaction effect of group x time was not significant (p = 0.27). Regarding working memory, there was a significant group × time interaction in favour of CWMT (p = 0.03), with improvement in working memory from baseline to 5 weeks (p Conclusions CWMT is not superior to active control in reducing hair-pulling. Working memory improved significantly over the short term with CWMT. The findings are a novel contribution to work on cognitive training effects on problematic repetitive behaviours.
               
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