Severity of borderline personality disorder symptoms as a moderator of the association between the use of dialectical behaviour therapy skills and treatment outcomes. (2nd October 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Seow, Lillian L. Y.; Page, Andrew C.; Hooke, Geoff R.
• Is Part Of: Psychotherapy research. Volume 30:Number 7(2020)
• Page Start: 920
• Page End: 933
• Publication Date: 2020-10-02
• Subjects: brief psychotherapy -- outcome research -- process research; 短期心理治療 -- 成效研究 -- 歷程研究; psicoterapia breve -- investigação de resultados, investigação dos processos; psicoterapia breve -- ricerca sull'esito -- ricerca di processo; Psychotherapy -- Periodicals; Psychotherapy -- Research -- Periodicals; Psychotherapy -- Periodicals; Psychothérapie -- Périodiques; Psychothérapie -- Recherche -- Périodiques; 616.891405
• DOI: 10.1080/10503307.2020.1720931
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1050-3307

Abstract

Abstract: A core aspect of Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) is the acquisition and use of DBT skills to replace maladaptive behaviours. However, it is unclear whether DBT skill use is associated with differential reductions in psychological distress across individuals with varying severities of borderline personality disorder (BPD) symptoms. In the current study, moderated mediation analyses were conducted to examine the relationships among DBT skill use and attitudes towards skill use, pre-treatment BPD symptom severity and changes in psychological distress over the course of a 12-week DBT-informed program in a sample of outpatients with mixed psychopathology ( N = 102), including a minority with BPD ( N = 16). It was predicted that (i) self-reported use of the four types of DBT skills (mindfulness, emotion regulation, distress tolerance and interpersonal effectiveness) and (ii) patient attitudes towards these skills (confidence and perceived effectiveness) would be associated with greater improvements in psychological distress in individuals with higher levels of BPD symptoms compared to individuals with lower levels of BPD symptoms. Results supported this hypothesis, indicating that self-reported DBT skill use and attitudes towards DBT skills are associated with differential patterns of reductions in psychological distress.