Evidence-based treatment of personality dysfunction: Principles, methods, and processes.

Abstract

The treatment of personality disorders is a rapidly evolving focus of contemporary mental health practice. Personality dysfunction is often further complicated by the comorbidity of an Axis I disorder, such as anxiety, bipolar disorder, depression, substance abuse, and others. Because personality dysfunction cuts across many clinical domains, practitioners with the most effective therapeutic interventions are in high demand. Accordingly, clinicians must have access to current evidence-based best practices to maximize their treatment impact. This volume is a collection of the most up-to-date research on personality disorder treatment written by leading scholars of psychopathology and psychotherapy. Organized by different therapeutic approaches, each chapter presents a theoretical framework, evidence-based methods, and clinical examples. The chapters cover dialectical behavior therapy, psychodynamic theory, interpersonal theory, relational theory, family systems theory, integrative theory, and the unified approach to treating personality disorders. In addition to synthesizing the latest research on personality systems and evidence-based practice, this book also packages key clinical recommendations for the effective treatment of personality dysfunction.