Validity of a Norwegian version of the Desire Thinking Questionnaire (DTQ): Associations with problem drinking, nicotine dependence and problematic social media use.

The aim of the current study was to test the validity of the Norwegian version of the Desire Thinking Questionnaire (DTQ). Three cross-sectional surveys were conducted investigating the psychometric properties of the DTQ in alcohol use (N = 588), nicotine use (N = 446) and social media use (N = 359). Principal components and confirmatory factor analyses supported the original two-factor solution consisting of verbal perseveration (VP) and imaginal prefiguration (IP); however, one item was removed to obtain good fit. Internal consistency was acceptable. Both IP and VP showed significant correlations with problem drinking, nicotine dependence and problematic social media use. Regression analyses, controlling for demographics and negative affect, found IP and VP to be significantly associated with all dependent variables. The results confirm that desire thinking is an important construct across different addictive behaviours.

The efficacy of teaching psychology students exposure and response prevention for obsessive-compulsive disorder.

The aim of the study was to investigate whether inexperienced student therapists could successfully learn exposure and response prevention for obsessive-compulsive disorder. Twenty out of 21 outpatients completed treatment as delivered by ten psychology students. A total of 60 hours group supervision and approximately 30 hours with individual supervision was given to the students over the course of three semesters. Large effect sizes were observed for measures of symptoms and depression. Sixty-two percent (N= 13) of the intent to treat group achieved clinical significant change and 81% no longer met the diagnosis criteria (N= 17). The treatment effects observed at the 6 month follow-up period were promising. The results are encouraging for training students in evidence based treatment for specific disorders.