Applying group cognitive behavioral therapy for anxiety disorders in community settings: Retention, outcome, and clinical considerations

The efficacy, and to a lesser extent, effectiveness, of individual cognitive behavioral therapy(CBT) for anxiety disorders has been demonstrated, but whether manualized treatments work in a group format in community settings is less established. We investigated the predictors of retention and outcome in 26 groups (11 Generalized Anxiety Disorder, 11 Panic, 4 Social Phobia groups), conducted for more than 10 years in a semirural community mental health center by 19 therapists. Members of the Anxiety Disorders Treatment Team delivered manualized group CBT treatments. Analysis of standard symptom measures at pre- and posttreatment and archival data revealed significant pre-post decreases in anxiety, retention rates comparable to past findings on group retention, and several significant predictors of retention and outcome. Manualized group CBT for anxiety appears to be a viable treatment in community settings. Limitations of the study as well as related practice-research implications of the findings are discussed.