Choi, Y., Kim, Y., Choi, S., Choi, Y.E., Kwon, O., Kwon, D.H. et al. · BMJ Open · 2023
This is a study protocol (not yet reporting results) for a randomized, assessor-blinded, three-arm clinical MRI trial comparing EFT, written exposure therapy, and waiting list for PTSD.
If this trial eventually shows tapping working as well as written exposure therapy for PTSD, brain-imaging evidence could give skeptical clinicians and health systems the kind of hard neurological data that makes them willing to refer patients to tapping alongside more established trauma treatments. That referral would carry extra weight precisely because tapping is self-administered — a system endorsing it isn't just adding a service, it's handing patients a tool they can keep using long after the study ends.
The real prize is what the completed trial could show: if EFT performs comparably to written exposure therapy, the structural and functional MRI data could reveal whether tapping calms amygdala reactivity to trauma cues through the same pathway as exposure-based therapies, or a distinct one. Worth also checking whether facial-expression-coded distress during recall tracks with the MRI signal, and whether the healthy-control scans help calibrate what neurological 'recovery' actually looks like, not just symptomatic improvement.
| Design | Randomized trial |
|---|---|
| Participants | 120 people |
| Population | patients with PTSD (planned n=120) plus 60 healthy controls without lifetime trauma |
| Comparison group | written exposure therapy (WET) and waiting list (WL) vs EFT |
| Outcome measures | Clinician-Administered PTSD Scale, depression, anxiety, somatic symptoms, quality of life, structural/functional MRI, facial expression recordings |
| Journal | BMJ Open |
| Year | 2023 |
| Country | South Korea |
| Language | English |
| Method | EFT / tapping |
| Publication type | Study / trial |
| Verification | ✓ Confirmed against the primary source |
Choi, Y., Kim, Y., Choi, S., Choi, Y.E., Kwon, O., Kwon, D.H., et al., & Kim, H. (2023). Emotional freedom technique versus written exposure therapy versus waiting list for post-traumatic stress disorder: protocol for a randomised clinical MRI study. BMJ Open. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2022-070389
This record is part of the Tapping Evidence Base — an openly-sourced, fully-referenced directory of the research on EFT/tapping. Explore more studies on PTSD & Trauma
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