DOI: 10.4103/ijsp.ijsp_34_25 ISSN: 0971-9962

Event-related Potential as a Biomarker for Change after Adjunctive Forgiveness Therapy in Alcohol Dependence Syndrome: A Case–Control Study

Liza Thankam Daniel, Nishant Goyal, Madhumita Bhattacharya, Swarnali Bose, S. Umesh, Subham Samantaray, Justin Raj
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Abstract

Introduction:

Individuals with alcohol dependence often use alcohol as a means of avoidance coping, finding it difficult to manage anger and resentment in distressing situations. Negative emotions, particularly anger, play a significant role in both dependence and relapse. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the impact of adjunctive forgiveness therapy (FT) on patients with alcohol dependence using an open-label design.

Materials and Methods:

A total of 30 subjects, after the completion of baseline assessments, were randomly assigned to two groups, each consisting of 15 subjects. Subjects in the experimental group underwent 12 individual sessions of FT over a period of 6 weeks, and participants from the other group underwent treatment as usual (TAU). Pre- and post-therapy assessments of forgiveness and negative affect, event-related potential components like N400 and late positive potential (LPP) were performed.

Results:

After 6 weeks of FT, there was a significant improvement in the self-reported measurement of forgiveness ( P = 0.000***), state anger ( P = 0.000***), trait anger ( P = 0.01**), and state anxiety ( P = 0.000***) in the FT group than in the TAU group. However, outcome variables such as depression ( P = 0.89), shame ( P = 0.25), guilt ( P = 0.33), and trait anxiety ( P = 0.30) scores improved in both groups; thus, no significant differences were found between the groups. A significant reduction of N 400 amplitude for “revenge” stimuli at the right frontal region and an increase of LPP amplitude for “forgiveness” stimuli were also found at the right parietal region among the FT group.

Conclusion:

FT is a promising model which can be used as an adjunctive therapy for enhancing forgiveness and reducing anger among patients with alcohol dependence syndrome.

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