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Exposure response prevention for youth with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)

Children's Mental Health: Anxiety
Benefit-cost methods last updated December 2024.  Literature review updated July 2019.
Exposure-response prevention (ERP) uses exposure to feared stimuli to treat obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) in children and adolescents. In this treatment, the patient is exposed to stimuli that reliably trigger obsessive or compulsive behaviors. The patient is encouraged to resist engaging in these behaviors, thereby learning to reduce their anxiety without relying on the obsessions or compulsions. ERP interventions are typically delivered by therapists in individual or family format in an outpatient setting. ERP is frequently included as an element in cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), however, this meta-analysis focuses on evaluations of ERP as a stand-alone intervention, rather than as part of CBT. The ERP interventions in this analysis provided an average of 11 hours of therapy over eight weeks.
 
ALL
BENEFIT-COST
META-ANALYSIS
CITATIONS
For an overview of WSIPP's Benefit-Cost Model, please see this guide. The estimates shown are present value, life cycle benefits and costs. All dollars are expressed in the base year chosen for this analysis (2023).  The chance the benefits exceed the costs are derived from a Monte Carlo risk analysis. The details on this, as well as the economic discount rates and other relevant parameters are described in our Technical Documentation.
Benefit-Cost Summary Statistics Per Participant
Benefits to:
Taxpayers $4,964 Benefits minus costs $15,421
Participants $10,161 Benefit to cost ratio $29.55
Others $738 Chance the program will produce
Indirect $98 benefits greater than the costs 87%
Total benefits $15,961
Net program cost ($540)
Benefits minus cost $15,421

^^WSIPP does not include this outcome when conducting benefit-cost analysis for this program.

Meta-analysis is a statistical method to combine the results from separate studies on a program, policy, or topic to estimate its effect on an outcome. WSIPP systematically evaluates all credible evaluations we can locate on each topic. The outcomes measured are the program impacts measured in the research literature (for example, impacts on crime or educational attainment). Treatment N represents the total number of individuals or units in the treatment group across the included studies.

An effect size (ES) is a standard metric that summarizes the degree to which a program or policy affects a measured outcome. If the effect size is positive, the outcome increases. If the effect size is negative, the outcome decreases. See Estimating Program Effects Using Effect Sizes for additional information on how we estimate effect sizes.

The effect size may be adjusted from the unadjusted effect size estimated in the meta-analysis. Historically, WSIPP adjusted effect sizes to some programs based on the methodological characteristics of the study. For programs reviewed in 2024 or later, we do not make additional adjustments, and we use the unadjusted effect size whenever we run a benefit-cost analysis.

Research shows the magnitude of effects may change over time. For those effect sizes, we estimate outcome-based adjustments, which we apply between the first time ES is estimated and the second time ES is estimated. More details about these adjustments can be found in our Technical Documentation.

Meta-Analysis of Program Effects
Outcomes measured Treatment age No. of effect sizes Treatment N Effect sizes (ES) and standard errors (SE) used in the benefit-cost analysis Unadjusted effect size (random effects model)
First time ES is estimated Second time ES is estimated
ES SE Age ES SE Age ES p-value
Anxiety disorder
Clinical diagnosis of an anxiety disorder (e.g., general anxiety, panic, social anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder) or symptoms measured on a validated scale.
 9 3 32 -0.923 0.347 9 -0.365 0.305 10 -0.968 0.001
Major depressive disorder^^
Clinical diagnosis of major depression or symptoms measured on a validated scale.
 9 1 5 -0.333 0.617 9 n/a n/a n/a -0.333 0.590
1In addition to the outcomes measured in the meta-analysis table, WSIPP measures benefits and costs estimated from other outcomes associated with those reported in the evaluation literature. For example, empirical research demonstrates that high school graduation leads to reduced crime. These associated measures provide a more complete picture of the detailed costs and benefits of the program.

2“Others” includes benefits to people other than taxpayers and participants. Depending on the program, it could include reductions in crime victimization, the economic benefits from a more educated workforce, and the benefits from employer-paid health insurance.

3“Indirect benefits” includes estimates of the net changes in the value of a statistical life and net changes in the deadweight costs of taxation.
Detailed Monetary Benefit Estimates Per Participant
Affected outcome: Resulting benefits:1 Benefits accrue to:
Taxpayers Participants Others2 Indirect3 Total
Anxiety disorder K-12 grade repetition $21 $0 $0 $11 $32
Labor market earnings associated with anxiety disorder $4,227 $9,958 $0 $0 $14,186
Health care associated with anxiety disorder $715 $202 $738 $358 $2,014
Program cost Adjustment for deadweight cost of program $0 $0 $0 ($270) ($270)
Totals $4,964 $10,161 $738 $98 $15,961
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Detailed Annual Cost Estimates Per Participant
Annual cost Year dollars Summary
Program costs $1,585 2016 Present value of net program costs (in 2023 dollars) ($540)
Comparison costs $1,144 2016 Cost range (+ or -) 20%
In studies included in this analysis, participants in the treatment group received an average of 11 hours of therapist time. Per-participant cost estimates are based on the weighted average therapist time, as reported in the treatment studies. Hourly therapist cost is based on the actuarial estimates of reimbursement by modality (Mercer (2016). Mental health and substance use disorder services data book for the state of Washington). Comparison group costs were calculated in the same way, based on the weighted average therapist time.
The figures shown are estimates of the costs to implement programs in Washington. The comparison group costs reflect either no treatment or treatment as usual, depending on how effect sizes were calculated in the meta-analysis. The cost range reported above reflects potential variation or uncertainty in the cost estimate; more detail can be found in our Technical Documentation.
Benefits Minus Costs
Benefits by Perspective
Taxpayer Benefits by Source of Value
Benefits Minus Costs Over Time (Cumulative Discounted Dollars)
The graph above illustrates the estimated cumulative net benefits per-participant for the first fifty years beyond the initial investment in the program. We present these cash flows in discounted dollars. If the dollars are negative (bars below $0 line), the cumulative benefits do not outweigh the cost of the program up to that point in time. The program breaks even when the dollars reach $0. At this point, the total benefits to participants, taxpayers, and others, are equal to the cost of the program. If the dollars are above $0, the benefits of the program exceed the initial investment.

Citations Used in the Meta-Analysis

Bolton, D., & Perrin, S. (2008). Evaluation of exposure with response-prevention for obsessive compulsive disorder in childhood and adolescence. Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, 39, 11-22.

Lewin, A.B., Park, J.M., Jones, A.M., Crawford, E .A., De Nadai, A.S., Menzel, J., . . . Storch, E.A. (2014). Family-based exposure and response prevention therapy for preschool-aged children with obsessive-compulsive disorder: A pilot randomized controlled trial. Behavior Research and Therapy, 56,30-38.

Simons, M., Schneider, S., & Herpertz-Dahlmann, B. (2006). Metacognitive therapy versus exposure and response prevention for pediatric obsessive-compulsive disorder. Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, 75, 257-264.