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Autonomous motivation: a predictor of treatment outcome in bulimia-spectrum eating disorders
Sandra Mansour1, Kenneth R Bruce, Howard Steiger
1Eating Disorders Program, Douglas Mental Health University Institute, Quebec, Canada. sandra.mansour@mail.mcgill.ca
Unlabelled:
Individuals with eating disorders are said to be highly ambivalent towards change and thus have difficulty maintaining a commitment to, and motivation for, treatment. Self-Determination Theory postulates that autonomous motivation for therapy exists when individuals view their participation as freely chosen.
Objective:
The present study was designed to ascertain whether or not autonomous motivation was associated with treatment response in individuals with bulimia-spectrum eating disorders (BSED).
Method:
One hundred and fifty-five women with DSM-IV-TR BSED participated in multimodal group therapy and completed measures to assess motivation, eating and comorbid symptoms.
Results:
Hierarchical multiple regression analyses demonstrated that higher levels of autonomous motivation at pretreatment predicted lower post-treatment scores on measures of eating preoccupations (shape, weight and eating concerns), binge eating, anxiety/depression, relationship to self and others and impulsivity.
Discussion:
These results indicate that autonomous motivation may be an important predictor of outcome following treatment for BSED.
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