Who is providing what type of psychotherapy to eating disorder clients? A survey

Abstract

Objective: Little is known about the psychotherapies delivered to eating-disordered clients by community therapists. We sought to describe the education and training of psychotherapists working with eating-disordered clients, the psychotherapeutic approaches used, and the reasons for use.

Method: Eligible Calgary clinicians were identified and asked to complete a 25-item telephone interview.

Results: The response rate was 74%. Educational backgrounds and fields of specialization of clinicians who completed the survey (n = 52) varied widely, as did the psychotherapies used. The most common primary therapeutic orientations of respondents were eclectic therapy (50%), cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT; 33%), and addiction-based therapy (6%). Most clinicians (87%) reported frequently using CBT techniques with eating-disordered clients. The reasons given for using primary therapeutic approaches varied by clinicians' preferred therapeutic approach and education level.

Conclusion: Clinicians generally choose to tailor treatment to individual needs rather than base decisions on the level of empirical support. These findings have implications for dissemination of empirically supported psychotherapies.