First Experimental Study of Transference Work - In Teenagers (FEST-IT)

The First Experimental Study on Transference work - In Teenagers (FEST-IT) will be a randomized clinical trial, which will be designed to explore effects of transference work in dynamic psychotherapy in adolescents with major depressive disorder (MDD). The design of the study is a so-called dismantling design, in which a single component is added and/or varied to an existent treatment method (psychodynamic psychotherapy). Thus, the efficiency of a specific technique (transference interventions) can be identified. The primary hypothesis is that the transference group may have a more favorable course over time than will the comparison group. The second hypothesis is that patients with a history of low Quality of Object Relations score and/or personality disorders-might benefit more from therapy with transference work than from therapy without. The third hypothesis is that female adolescents may have better treatment effect of transference work than male adolescents.