ArticleCognitive therapy and research2012
The Efficacy of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: A Review of Meta-analyses.
Article in Cognitive therapy and research, 2012. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to 14 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 951 papers, 16 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Rumination Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Major Depression and Recurrent Depression and Relapse Prevention -a Pragmatic RCT Study in a Danish Psychiatric Outpatient Service
Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) for Primary Care Patients With Mild to Moderate Symptoms of Depression or Anxiety.
Addressing Depression and Anxiety Symptoms in Patients With Inflammatory Bowel Disease (ADAPT-IBD)
Effects of a Modified Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy for Family Caregivers of People With Dementia in Stress Reduction: A Randomized Controlled Trial
Willkommen Mutterglück: A Controlled Trial of Internet Based Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) for Pregnant and Postpartum Women With Depression and Anxiety
Community Applications of the MindShift App
Physical Exercise as Adjunctive Therapy for Affective Disorder and Anxiety - a Retrospective Study of the Braining Project 2017-2020 Regarding Feasibility, Participants and Changes in Symptoms, Function and Physical Parameters
Well-being Online: Internet-based Self-administered Intervention to Reduce Anxiety and Depression Symptomatology: Randomized Clinical Trial in 7 Countries
The Efficacy of Online Brief Positive Cognitive Behavior Therapy Compared to Traditional Cognitive Behavior Therapy on Improving Well-Being and Goal Attainment in Young Adults
Usability, Acceptability, and Preliminary Effectiveness of a Digital Health Technology for Patient Monitoring of Chronic Insomnia Symptoms and the Promotion of Functional Sleep Behaviors: A Randomized Clinical Trial
Virtual Intelligence for Transformative Lifestyle Solutions in Pain
The Effectiveness and Efficacy of an Online Group Cognitive Behavioral Psychotherapy in Patients With Cystic Fibrosis and Caregivers in Comparison to Control Groups by the Hellenic Cystic Fibrosis Association A Randomized Controlled Trial
Rewiring Expectations and Amplifying Rewards: A Study Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial of Mechanism-Based Group Psychotherapy for Major Depressive Disorder
Assessing the Clinical and Cost Effectiveness of Internet-Based Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (iCBT) for Anxiety and Depression in Singapore
Who cites it
951 citing papers in PubMed, 16 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 3,265 citations in OpenAlex.
- A systematic review culturally adapted Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CaCBT) for Arabic-speaking populations including North African subgroups.BMC psychology · 2026Pooled it
- Cognitive Behavioral Interventions for Children and Adolescents With Overweight or Obesity: A Systematic Review and Component Network Meta-Analysis.Obesity reviews : an official journal of the International Association for the Study of Obesity · 2026Pooled it
- Noninvasive brain stimulation combined with evidence-based psychotherapy for psychiatric disorders: A meta-analysis of optimal implementation parameters.Neuroscience and biobehavioral reviews · 2026Pooled it
- Effectiveness of psychosocial interventions for adults with substance use disorder that have a co-occurring mental health disorder: an umbrella review and illustrative cost-effectiveness analysis.Health technology assessment (Winchester, England) · 2026Pooled it
- Dose-Response Meta-analysis of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Parental Stress in Parents of Children with Special Needs.Clinical child and family psychology review · 2026Pooled it
- Which therapy works best for maternal depressive symptoms? A network meta-analysis of psychotherapeutic interventions.Archives of women's mental health · 2026Pooled it
- Pooled it
- The effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy for smoking cessation: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Journal of behavioral medicine · 2025Pooled it
- The Use of Physical Activity in Coping with Test Anxiety Among Students: A Systematic Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2025Pooled it
- The efficacy of psychological interventions for infertile women: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC women's health · 2025Pooled it
- Cognitive Behavioural Therapy and Dual Diagnosis: A Systematic Review Exploring Its Effectiveness and Implications for Nursing Practice.International journal of mental health nursing · 2025Pooled it
- Effects of CBT-based interventions on health outcomes in breast cancer patients: a systematic review and Meta-analysis.Breast cancer (Tokyo, Japan) · 2025Pooled it
- The Efficacy of Nurse-Delivered Psychosocial and Psychotherapeutic Interventions for Individuals With Mental Health Issues: A Meta-Analysis of Randomised Controlled Trials.Scandinavian journal of caring sciences · 2025Pooled it
- Behaviour change techniques used in interventions targeting dementia risk factors amongst older adults in rural and remote areas: A systematic review and meta-analysis.The journal of prevention of Alzheimer's disease · 2025Pooled it
- The effectiveness of web-based grief intervention for adults who lost a loved one: A systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC palliative care · 2025Pooled it
- Examining cognitive behavioral therapy interventions for unaccompanied minors: a systematic review and qualitative research synthesis.European child & adolescent psychiatry · 2025Pooled it
- Optimizing the Work of Learning for Flourishing: A Randomized Pilot Study of a Digital CBT-Based Intervention in Medical Students.Academic psychiatry : the journal of the American Association of Directors of Psychiatric Residency Training and the Association for Academic Psychiatry · 2026Trial
- Effect of a group-based acceptance and commitment therapy intervention on cognitive emotion regulation and psychological flexibility in patients with bipolar disorder.Psychology and psychotherapy · 2026Trial
- Preliminary Findings on the Unified Protocol for Transdiagnostic Treatment: A Pilot Trial on Its Effectiveness on Anxiety and Depressive Symptoms for Turkish Adults.Journal of clinical psychology · 2026Trial
- Trial
891 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) refers to a popular therapeutic approach that has been applied to a variety of problems. The goal of this review was to provide a comprehensive survey of meta-analyses examining the efficacy of CBT. We identified 269 meta-analytic studies and reviewed of those a representative sample of 106 meta-analyses examining CBT for the following problems: substance use disorder, schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders, depression and dysthymia, bipolar disorder, anxiety disorders, somatoform disorders, eating disorders, insomnia, personality disorders, anger and aggression, criminal behaviors, general stress, distress due to general medical conditions, chronic pain and fatigue, distress related to pregnancy complications and female hormonal conditions. Additional meta-analytic reviews examined the efficacy of CBT for various problems in children and elderly adults. The strongest support exists for CBT of anxiety disorders, somatoform disorders, bulimia, anger control problems, and general stress. Eleven studies compared response rates between CBT and other treatments or control conditions. CBT showed higher response rates than the comparison conditions in 7 of these reviews and only one review reported that CBT had lower response rates than comparison treatments. In general, the evidence-base of CBT is very strong. However, additional research is needed to examine the efficacy of CBT for randomized-controlled studies. Moreover, except for children and elderly populations, no meta-analytic studies of CBT have been reported on specific subgroups, such as ethnic minorities and low income samples.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.