Trial reportBMC psychiatry2015
Indoor rock climbing (bouldering) as a new treatment for depression: study design of a waitlist-controlled randomized group pilot study and the first results.
Trial report in BMC psychiatry, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 46 papers, 6 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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
46 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Efficacy of different exercise interventions on cognitive function in adults with major depressive disorder and subthreshold depression: a systematic review with pairwise and network meta-analyses.European archives of psychiatry and clinical neuroscience · 2026Pooled it
- Effects of exercise on cognitive function in patients with depression: a three-level meta-analysis with dose-response and exploratory mediation analyses.The international journal of behavioral nutrition and physical activity · 2026Pooled it
- Effectiveness of indoor rock climbing and bouldering as treatment for depression - a systematic review.BMC psychiatry · 2025Pooled it
- Resistance training for depression: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Frontiers in psychology · 2025Pooled it
- Physical exercise improves quality of life, depressive symptoms, and cognition across chronic brain disorders: a transdiagnostic systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Journal of neurology · 2021Pooled it
- Exercise for Cognitive Symptoms in Depression: A Systematic Review of Interventional Studies.Canadian journal of psychiatry. Revue canadienne de psychiatrie · 2018Pooled it
- WISE-Therapy (What's Important: Schedule and Engage) and bouldering psychotherapy for depression: A randomized clinical trial.BMC medicine · 2026Trial
- Climbing as an Add-On Treatment Option for Patients with Severe Anxiety Disorders and PTSD: Feasibility Analysis and First Results of a Randomized Controlled Longitudinal Clinical Pilot Trial.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Trial
- A Comparison of Acute Effects of Climbing Therapy with Nordic Walking for Inpatient Adults with Mental Health Disorder: A Clinical Pilot Trial.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Trial
- Is bouldering-psychotherapy a cost-effective way to treat depression when compared to group cognitive behavioral therapy - results from a randomized controlled trial.BMC health services research · 2021Trial
- Bouldering psychotherapy is effective in enhancing perceived self-efficacy in people with depression: results from a multicenter randomized controlled trial.BMC psychology · 2021Trial
- Effectiveness of a Psychoeducational Group Intervention Carried Out by Nurses for Patients with Depression and Physical Comorbidity in Primary Care: Randomized Clinical Trial.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Trial
- Bouldering psychotherapy is more effective in the treatment of depression than physical exercise alone: results of a multicentre randomised controlled intervention study.BMC psychiatry · 2020Trial
- Forearm blood flow and vascular conductance improve after 18 weeks of bouldering training in novice climbers.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2026Article
- Evaluating climbing interventions for Parkinson's disease: a systematic review.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2026Review
- Can exercise truly alleviate mild-to-moderate and subthreshold depression? Evidence from randomized controlled trials.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Review
- The role of therapeutic climbing in child and adolescent mental health: a systematic literature review.BMC sports science, medicine & rehabilitation · 2025Article
- Activity of upper-limb muscles during therapeutic climbing: a cross-sectional comparison between fractured and healthy individuals.BMC sports science, medicine & rehabilitation · 2025Article
- Exploring the role of the rock climbing Treadwall as a novel therapy tool in physical rehabilitation.PM & R : the journal of injury, function, and rehabilitation · 2025Observational
- Scaling new heights: a prospective survey of rock climbing's impact on mental health.Discover mental health · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundDepression is one of the most common diseases in industrialised nations. Physical activity is regarded as an important part of therapeutic intervention. Rock climbing or bouldering (rock climbing to moderate heights without rope) comprises many aspects that are considered useful, but until now, there has been hardly any research on the effects of a bouldering group intervention on people with depression. The purpose of this controlled pilot study was twofold: first, to develop a manual for an eight-week interventional program that integrates psychotherapeutic interventions in a bouldering group setting and second, to assess the effects of a bouldering intervention on people with depression.
methodsThe intervention took place once a week for three hours across a period of eight weeks. Participants were randomly assigned to the two groups (intervention vs. waitlist). The intervention group began the bouldering therapy immediately after a baseline measurement was taken; the waitlist participants began after an eight-week period of treatment as usual. On four measurement dates at eight-week intervals, participants completed the Beck Depression Inventory II (BDI-II), the symptom checklist-90-R (SCL-90), the questionnaire on resources and self-management skills (FERUS), and the attention test d2-R. A total of 47 participants completed the study, and the data were analysed with descriptive statistics. Cohen's d was calculated as a measure of the effect size. For the primary hypothesis, a regression analysis and the Number Needed to Treat (NNT) (improvement of at least 6 points on the BDI-II) were calculated.
resultsAfter eight weeks of intervention, results indicated positive effects on the measures of depression (primary hypothesis: BDI-II: Cohen's d = 0.77), this was supported by the regression analysis with "group" as the only significant predictor of a change in depression (p = .007). The NNT was four.
conclusionsThese findings provide the first evidence that therapeutic bouldering may offer an effective treatment for depression. Further research is required.
trial registrationCurrent controlled trials, ISRCTN17623318 , registered on July 15(th) 2015.
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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.