Effectiveness of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy on Stigma, Anxiety, and Depression among Caregivers of Individuals with Intellectual Disability at a Neuropsychiatric Hospital in Benin City, Nigeria.

This study examined the efficacy of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) in reducing associative stigma and psychological distress among primary caregivers of individuals with intellectual disability at Federal Neuro-Psychiatric Hospital in Benin City, Nigeria, while statistically controlling for baseline differences. Using a pretest-posttest design, 66 caregivers (47 females, 19 males; M = 46.2, SD = 10.57) received a structured CBT intervention. Data were collected using the Associative Stigma Scale, Beck Anxiety Inventory, and Beck Depression Inventory. Post-test scores served as dependent variables, while corresponding pre-test scores were entered as covariates. ANCOVA was used for data analysis, with effect sizes reported as partial η². After adjusting for baseline scores, ANCOVA revealed a statistically significant effect of CBT on associative stigma, F(1, 20) = 2.96, p = .008, partial η² = .31, with mean scores reducing from pre-test (M = 10.73) to post-test (M = 5.09). A significant adjusted treatment effect was also observed for anxiety disorder, F(1, 20) = 16.22, p < .001, partial η² = .56, with mean anxiety scores decreasing from pre-test (M = 32.18) to post-test (M = 24.32). Similarly, CBT significantly reduced depressive symptoms after baseline adjustment, F(1, 20) = 11.56, p < .001, partial η² = .48, with mean depression scores declining from pre-test (M = 19.14) to post-test (M = 14.59). CBT showed moderate to large adjusted effects on associative stigma, anxiety, and depression.