Comparing the Effectiveness of Schema Therapy and CBT on Improving Early Maladaptive Schemas in Patients with Nervous Anorexia with Weak Mother Bond

The present study aimed at comparing the effectiveness of schema therapy and CBT on improving early maladaptive schemas in patients with nervous anorexia with weak mother bond.
The study had an experimental method with pretest-posttest design and follow-up with the control group. The study population included all patients aged 16 to 23 years with eating disorders who had referred to psychiatry and psychotherapy in clinical centers in Tehran. Purposive sampling was used in this study. Twenty-one (21) patients were diagnosed to have anorexia nervosa by performing the psychological screening. Finally, the selected patients were matched in two experimental groups and one control group. Data were collected through questionnaires and diagnostic interviews based on diagnostic criteria for eating disorders and psychiatric diagnosis. Two questionnaires were used in the study including 1. Parental Bonding Questionnaire 2. Young Schema Questionnaire.
Findings: Patients in the area of disconnection and rejection, impaired autonomy and performance, Hypervigilance /inhibition, have the most damage. But, little damage to the other area, impaired limits, and other-directedness. The results also indicate that in improving schemas, schema therapy was more effective and more durable than cognitive and behavioral therapy.