Table 5.

Meeting Votes and Comments in Favor and Against Explaining the Reasons for Recommending the Five Outcome Domains for Evaluating Psychology-Based Interventions.

Outcome domains	Vote	Comments in favor	Comments against
Acceptance of tinnitus	84	• Some stated that acceptance is an important starting point from where the person with tinnitus can start to move on. • Others felt “acceptance of tinnitus” was more important than “sense of control.”	Some felt this was a more “passive” domain that does not accurately reflect a reduction of the impact of/ distress caused by tinnitus.
Mood	100	• The group made a strong recommendation that the experience of “anxiety” and “depressive symptoms” should be added to the concept definition of “mood.”	No strong views expressed
Negative thoughts/ beliefs	79	No strong views expressed	• Some felt that this is more a process in the therapy than an outcome measure. • Some suggested this was more relevant to some psychological treatments than to others.
Sense of control	84	• The group observed that “sense of control” is particularly about feeling in control over the impact of tinnitus, perhaps as a consequence of mastering more positive coping strategies. • A construct that covers many aspects relating to tinnitus • Considered most important when symptoms are severe (e.g., sleep difficulties) • One patient felt that this is an “active” domain (unlike acceptance) that can represent a strong motivator for a patient to use a treatment.	• Some felt that applying coping techniques was more important than developing a sense of control. • The definition was considered to be too broad. • It could be encapsulated by other outcome domains. • Some participants disliked the term control, as this term is not well aligned with psychological treatment (i.e., tinnitus cannot be switched off).
Tinnitus intrusiveness	95	• The definition should describe in more detail in which way tinnitus can be intrusive. For this group, that meant impact on social life, impact on work, impact on relationships, impact on individual activities, difficulties getting to sleep, and quality of sleep.	No strong views expressed

Note. Votes represent the % of the 19 participants who agreed that these outcome domains should be included in the Core Outcome Domain Set.