The Role of Personality Disorders and Traits in Short-Term Psychodynamic Therapy versus Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Major Depression - Takeaways - MDSpire

The Role of Personality Disorders and Traits in Short-Term Psychodynamic Therapy versus Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Major Depression

  • By

  • Theresa Wilberg

  • Randi Ulberg

  • Ole Klungsøyr

  • Anders Malkomsen

  • André Løvgren

  • Kåre Osnes

  • Julie Horgen Evensen

  • Toril Dammen

  • Jan Ivar Røssberg

  • April 29, 2026

  • 0 min

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  • 1

    The study compared short-term psychodynamic therapy (STPP) and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for major depression in patients with and without personality disorders (PD).

  • 2

    Results showed no significant difference in clinical outcomes between patients with PD and those without after 28 weeks of therapy.

  • 3

    The presence of a PD diagnosis did not moderate the effectiveness of STPP versus CBT, but paranoid traits favored STPP outcomes.

  • 4

    Both STPP and CBT demonstrated large effect sizes for primary and secondary outcomes in treating major depression.

  • 5

    The findings suggest that mild to moderate personality pathology should not hinder standard psychotherapies for depression.

Original Source(s)

The Role of Personality Disorders and Traits in Short-Term Psychodynamic Therapy versus Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Major Depression

  • by Theresa Wilberg, Randi Ulberg, Ole Klungsøyr, Anders Malkomsen, André Løvgren, Kåre Osnes, Julie Horgen Evensen, Toril Dammen, Jan Ivar Røssberg

  • April 29, 2026

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