A Pilot Study of Obesity Management: Contributions of Cognitive-Behavioral Group Therapy to Stress, Anxiety, and Emotional Eating

Objetive. Cognitive-Behavioral Group Therapy (CBGT) is a group approach that assesses the interconnections between thoughts, emotions, and behaviors in a group setting. This study aimed to assess the feasibility and preliminary effectiveness of a CBGT protocol focused on emotion regulation, in redu...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Andressa Paiva Porto, Livia Nascimento Rabelo, Ezequiel Batista do Nascimento
Format: Article
Language:Spanish
Published: Universidad de Costa Rica 2025-01-01
Series:Actualidades en Psicología
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Online Access:https://revistas.ucr.ac.cr/index.php/actualidades/article/view/54969
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Summary:Objetive. Cognitive-Behavioral Group Therapy (CBGT) is a group approach that assesses the interconnections between thoughts, emotions, and behaviors in a group setting. This study aimed to assess the feasibility and preliminary effectiveness of a CBGT protocol focused on emotion regulation, in reducing emotional reactivity and its potential impact on components of emotion-driven eating behaviors. Method. Twenty participants underwent an 8-week intervention, with half receiving psychoeducational intervention and the other half receiving CBGT with a focus on emotional regulation. We used questionnaires to assess anxiety and eating behavior, and we measured psychophysiological changes through cortisol levels and heart rate variability. Results. After six weeks, the CBGT group had lower scores for emotional and uncontrolled eating, along with an increase in parasympathetic modulation and a decrease in cortisol levels. These results suggest that CBGT may hold potential for improving emotional regulation and reducing emotion-based eating behavior; however, further research is needed to confirm its effectiveness.
ISSN:0258-6444
2215-3535