From the University Agenda

Expert explained: Reading the right books improves depression and anxiety

Major depression, defined as a recurrent mental disorder that affects more than 300 million people worldwide and is one of the reasons for suicide of approximately one million people every year, causes deterioration in social adaptation, functionality and quality of life in individuals. Expert Psychiatrist Assoc. Prof. Dr. Alişan Burak Yaşar explained that research has shown that reading books based on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy contributes to further resolving the symptoms in the treatment of depression, which causes a significant loss of workforce and an economic burden for the society.

Stating that antidepressant drugs are frequently used in the treatment of depression, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Alişan Burak Yaşar from Istanbul Gelisim University (IGU), Faculty of Economics, Administrative and Social Sciences, Department of Psychology, said that bibliotherapy is a significant additional "medicine" for patients who have difficulty accessing psychotherapy.

“It is possible to deal with the problems and symptoms”

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Alişan Burak Yaşar:  "Bibliotherapy, also known as 'Book therapy', which provides information and suggestions about psychological change processes of individuals with little or no interaction with the therapist, can help individuals better understand their difficulties, improve their behavior and cope with problems and symptoms in daily life. There is a significant evidence regarding this issue."

“Not every book, not any self-help books as well!”

Saying that book selection is extremely important when we target depressive and anxiety complaints, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Alişan Burak Yaşar said, “Self-help books, especially those prepared within the framework of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Acceptance-Commitment Therapy and Schema Therapy, have a very different place compared to self-help books that are not prepared according to these techniques. The right books must be chosen.”

“It reduces the risk of recurrence of depression”

Bibliotherapy has significant advantages in terms of ease of use, accessibility, low cost, and reduced need for healthcare professionals. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Alişan Burak Yaşar: “As a result of the studies, we know that the risk of recurrence of depression decreases when psychosocial interventions are combined with drug treatment applied in psychotherapy or added to the treatment during the drug reduction period.” 

“Effective in anxiety and depression treatment”

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Alişan Burak Yaşar in his article titled "A randomized controlled study on the effect of cognitive behavioral therapy-based self-help psychotherapy books on anxiety and depressive symptoms: A bibliotherapy study", investigates the effect of reading books on patients suffering from depression and anxiety. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Yaşar noted that they were able to determine that bibliotherapy, which was initially thought to be effective only in mild disorders under professional guidance, was effective in the treatment of a wide range of clinical conditions, including mild and moderate depression and anxiety. Some of the books that were found to be good for depression and anxiety in their research are “İyi Hissetmek- Feeling Good (Psikonet Publishing)”, “Düşün Hisset Fark Et Yaşa (Epsilon Publishing)”, “Mutluluk Tuzağı- Happiness Trap (Litera Publishing)” ve “Hayatı Yeniden Keşfedin- Reinventing Your Life (Psikonet Publishing).