Sonja Skocic
The Melbourne Clinic, Australia
Title: Therapist drift and clinicians experiences of working with people who have eating disorders
Biography
Biography: Sonja Skocic
Abstract
Several studies have suggested that clinicians are reluctant to commit to evidence-based treatment protocols (e.g., Simmons et al., 2008). The aim of this study was to explore the relationship between interpersonal experiences of working therapeutically with people that have eating disorders and therapist drift away from using evidence based treatment. Cross-sectional information was obtained from clinicians who treat eating disorders (N=165) via an online survey that included questions regarding countertransference, attitudes to evidence based protocols, and the personal experience of working therapeutically (including emotional avoidance, accommodating and enabling behaviours and rigid therapeutic interactions). Clinicians were also asked to record whether they had a lived experience of an eating disorder themselves. The results supported existing theories that describe therapist drift away from using evidence-based treatments (i.e., Waller, 2009) and highlight the impact that interpersonal factors between clinician and patient have on treatment selection and adherence to protocol. Moreover, the results suggest that problematic interpersonal factors between clinician and patient may be contributing to accommodating and enabling the eating disorder (as per Schmidt & Treasure, 2006; Treasure, 2011).