Effectiveness of Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy on Physical Self-Description and Repetitive Negative Thinking of Female Adolescent with Eating Disorder

Eating disorder has many psychological complications. Cognitive therapy is one of the most widely used methods in the field of psychotherapy. The present research aimed to determine the effectiveness of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy on physical self-description and repetitive negative thinking among female adolescent with eating disorder.

This was a semi-experimental study with pre- and post-test design and a control group. The research population was all female students with eating disorder aged 15 to 16 years studying at secondary high schools of Ahvaz City in 2017-18. Thirty students were selected through available sampling method and randomly assigned into two equal groups. The experimental group received 8 weekly sessions of 90 min of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy and the control group was put on a waiting list. Research tools included the questionnaires of Garner & et al’s eating disorder, Marsh & et al’s physical self-description and Ehring & et al’s repetitive negative thinking. Data were analyzed with MANCOVA and ANCOVA in based MANCOVA methods.

The findings showed that the mindfulness-based cognitive therapy led to increase physical self-description (F=5/444, p<0/028) and to decreaserepetitive negative thinking (F=17/437, p<0/001) of female adolescent with eating disorder.

Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy method may be suggested as an alternative for enhancement of physical self-description and relief of repetitive negative thinking in female adolescent with eating disorder.