Comparing the Effectiveness of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Drug Therapy, and the Combination of These Two Methods in the Treatment of Major Depression

A large number of people are afflicted with major depressive disorder, leading to high societal costs. In addition, the treatment remains one of the most challenging and controversial issues in mental health. The main purpose of this study is to compare the effectiveness of acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), pharmacotherapy, and a blend of the two methods in treating major depressive disorder. Methods: A sample of 60 subjects was selected randomly from the middle-aged patients suffering from major depressive disorder (based on DSM-V criteria) with illness duration of one year that referred to all outpatient clinics of the Modares hospital in Isfahan. The patients were divided into four experimental groups including: acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), Drug Therapy, blend of the two aforementioned methods and control group. Statistical analysis was conducted using analysis of covariance. Results: Findings showed a significant difference in terms of depression among the three treatment groups. While the mean scores of depression in the posttest were 44.60 for the control group, the results for pharmacotherapy, ACT and combination group were 17.66, 26.53 and 15.13 respectively (p˂0.05). Discussion: Although, Pharmacotherapy and combined treatment are more effective than ACT alone, the combination of ACT and pharmacotherapy is the most effective with longer-lasting results in the treatment of adults with major depressive disorder in middle-aged Iranian patients.