Applicability of Family Therapy for Chinese Children and Adolescents Suffering from Anorexia Nervosa in a Chinese Context: A Preliminary Study

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article presents the results of a preliminary study that assesses the applicability of family therapy for Chinese adolescents suffering from anorexia nervosa in Hong Kong, an area that had never been studied in the past. A total of 27 Chinese emaciated children and adolescents received family therapy and conventional psychiatric treatment from the university-based family treatment center, in collaboration with the psychiatric unit of the university hospital. The treatment outcome was evaluated by changes in body weight, body mass index, symptoms associated with the disorder, level of psychological distress, marital quality of parents, and perceived family functioning at three different phases, namely, at the pretreatment phase, immediately upon the completion of treatment, and 6 months after treatment. The results of this study have shown that family therapy combined with conventional psychiatric treatment was effective in restoring body weight, increasing the body mass index, and recovering menstruation. Six months after treatment, patients were clinically no longer symptomatic in Drive for Thinness and Perfectionism; six psychological dimensions of the Symptoms Checklist-90 (R) have changed from a dysfunctional range to a functional range; and the fathers perceived significant improvement in dyadic consensus. However, changes of perceived family functioning 6 months after treatment were statistically insignificant, suggesting limitations of the assessment measure in capturing changes in this area.