ABSTRACT Background Clinical supervision is fundamental to the development of competent mental health professionals; however, established approaches are limited by challenges in scalability, direct observation and timely feedback. Artificial intelligence has emerged as a potential adjunct to supervision and clinical training, yet the full scope of existing applications has not been systematically mapped. Objective This scoping review systematically mapped artificial intelligence applications in the clinical supervision and training of psychologists and other mental health professionals. Methods The review was conducted in accordance with Joanna Briggs Institute guidance and reported following the PRISMA‐ScR. The protocol was registered on the Open Science Framework. Searches were conducted in nine databases, with supplementary searches in Google Scholar. Two reviewers independently screened records; charted data were checked against the original reports. Results Database searches identified 11,975 records; 4381 duplicates were removed, 7594 records were screened, 817 reports were assessed for eligibility and 73 sources of evidence were included. Four application categories were identified: virtual patient simulation, automated performance assessment, artificial intelligence‐enhanced supervisory feedback and training analytics. Most studies were published from 2022 onward and were concentrated in structured therapies, university‐based settings and high‐income countries. Conclusions Artificial intelligence is best positioned as an adjunct that expands opportunities for practice, observation and structured feedback, rather than as a replacement for human supervision. Future research should employ more rigorous designs, validated competency measures, transparent reporting of artificial intelligence systems and outcomes relevant to trainees, supervisors and clients.
ABSTRACT Introduction Cognitive behavioural therapy with exposure and response prevention (CBT/ERP) is the recommended first‐line psychological treatment for obsessive‐compulsive disorder (OCD). Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) has emerged as a promising alternative, yet treatment comparisons have primarily focused on symptom severity and even less is known about their effects on other domains. Study Aim We examined the effect of group‐based ACT and CBT/ERP on emotion regulation, anxiety sensitivity, insomnia and psychological flexibility in adults with OCD. Methods 176 adults with OCD were randomized to CBT/ERP or ACT and assessed with the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS), Sleep Condition Indicator (SCI), Anxiety Sensitivity Index‐Revised (ASI‐R) and Acceptance and Action Questionnaire for Obsessions and Compulsions (AAQ‐OC) at baseline, post‐treatment, 6‐month and 12‐month follow‐up and analysed with Mixed‐Model Repeated Measures (MMRM). Results Both treatments showed similar improvements in the four domains across timepoints. Conclusions In line with our hypotheses, our results indicated that ACT may be non‐inferior to CBT/ERP for all secondary outcomes. However, as the trial was powered for the primary outcome (symptom severity) rather than for these secondary measures, our findings should be interpreted as suggestive. Nonetheless, these findings add to the growing evidence that ACT may be considered a viable treatment for OCD.
ABSTRACT Over the past 20 years, cognitive behavioural therapy for psychosis (CBTp) has seen worldwide implementation in mental health services. Systematic reviews and meta‐syntheses have identified common and specific therapeutic factors in CBTp, yet its efficacy remains modest. Since its global implementation, a myriad of qualitative studies have explored service users' experiences of CBTp but have yet to be comprehensively integrated in one meta‐synthesis to identify paths forward. A thematic meta‐synthesis of qualitative studies examining service users' experiences of CBTp was conducted according to a pre‐registered protocol. Systematic searches of CINAHL, Embase, PsycInfo, PubMed and MEDLINE databases were conducted in May 2026. Independent raters screened results for eligible papers and assessed their quality using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme. Results are reported in accordance with PRISMA guidelines. Twenty‐four studies were included in the analysis, with a pooled sample of 334 participants. Three interconnected themes were generated: active collaboration empowers me; promoting safety makes me feel more trusting; developing shared understandings helps me accept or challenge upsetting experiences . They show that CBTp techniques promote acceptance and new meanings if sensitively and collaboratively used and collaboration in CBTp facilitates therapeutic outcomes via empowerment. Both relationships occur only when participants feel safe. In the largest review to date, these themes indicate the pivotal importance of collaboratively building safety and acceptance in facilitating therapeutic gains in CBTp. The development of scalable talking therapies should not compromise idiosyncrasy and digitisation of CBTp should carefully avoid compromising the therapeutic relationship for the sake of challenging appraisals.
ABSTRACT The therapeutic benefits of virtual reality‐based avatar therapy (VRT) compared with conventional psychotherapies remain unknown in individuals with treatment‐resistant major depressive disorder (TRD). Accordingly, this study aimed to explore patients' lived experience of VRT to identify perceived therapeutic processes and benefits, better understand how virtual reality and dialogue with an avatar contribute to therapeutic change and examine how these experiences differed from those associated with conventional psychotherapeutic approaches. A total of 12 individuals with TRD who had completed 8–12 weekly VRT sessions (mean 10.75 sessions) after previously receiving at least two conventional psychotherapies were selected from a clinical trial. Semi‐structured interviews conducted following completion of the VRT were analysed using an inductive qualitative content analysis approach. Six themes describing the therapeutic processes underlying VRT were identified: immersive role‐play, putting theory into practice, the structure of therapy, emotional investment, an atypical therapeutic stance and externalization of internal processes. In addition, three perceived benefits emerged from these processes: integration of therapeutic concepts into daily life, development of mentalization capacities and enhanced self‐determination. Finally, confrontation emerged as a transversal theme linking both the therapeutic processes and their perceived benefits. These findings suggest that VRT combines therapeutic processes common to conventional psychotherapies with distinctive features that may influence how benefits are experienced by patients. Future research should examine whether these distinctive processes account for VRT's added therapeutic value and contribute to clinical improvement.
ABSTRACT Background and Aim This study aims to evaluate the differences between the groups with and without risky alcohol use (RAU) in terms of sociodemographic characteristics, anxiety level, adult attachment styles (AASs) and early maladaptive schemas (EMSs) in individuals diagnosed with anxiety disorders (ADs). Furthermore, we aim to investigate whether RAU in individuals with ADs can be predicted by EMS or AAS. Methods In this prospective study, a total of 128 individuals diagnosed with ADs were divided into two groups based on the Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test (MAST) cut‐off score (≥ 5). Scores from the Adult Attachment Style Scale, Young Schema Questionnaire and Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), as well as demographic and clinical variables, were analysed. Results The RAU group showed higher rates of suicide history and higher scores on the abandonment and unrelenting standards (US) schemas. Higher scores on abandonment and US schemas were associated with a greater likelihood of RAU. MAST scores positively correlated with emotional deprivation, failure to achieve, pessimism, social isolation, AS, dependence, abandonment, vulnerability schema scores and BAI scores in individuals with RAU. Hierarchical regression showed that attachment and schema subscales accounted for 42% of the variance in MAST scores. The higher scores on emotional inhibition, defectiveness, vulnerability schemas and anxious attachment style significantly predicted MAST scores. Conclusion These findings support the theoretical basis for attachment‐based and schema therapy‐based interventions, highlighting the importance of assessing especially abandonment, US, defectiveness, vulnerability schemas and anxious attachment style.
