Toward Person(ality)-Centered Treatment: How Consideration of Personality and Individual Differences in Anorexia Nervosa May Improve Treatment Outcome

Abstract

Anorexia nervosa (AN) is a serious illness that challenges mental health professionals globally. While family-based treatment is well established for adolescents with parents able to collaborate, little data are available to inform treatment choice for chronic or adult patients. This review proposes that the current high attrition, poor compliance, and suboptimal efficacy of outpatient interventions may reflect inadequate consideration of individual difference variables. Data on certain variables demonstrated to have relevance for AN are briefly summarized, and novel psychotherapeutic interventions that have taken these variables into account are reviewed. These data suggest that identifying subgroups of individuals with AN on the basis of relevant personality or neurocognitive variables may be one way to improve treatment acceptability and effectiveness for this challenging population.