A controlled trial of personal construct psychotherapy for deliberate self-harm

Evidence for the effectiveness of psychological therapies for people who self‐harm is limited. Personal construct theory provides a model of self‐harm and a framework for therapeutic intervention, which was evaluated in the present study. Sixty‐four adults presenting to Accident and Emergency depart...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Psychology and psychotherapy 2007-03, Vol.80 (1), p.23-37
Main Authors: Winter, David, Sireling, Lester, Riley, Tony, Metcalfe, Christopher, Quaite, Ash, Bhandari, Suchitra
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Biological and medical sciences
Female
Follow-Up Studies
Humans
Individual psychotherapy
Male
Medical sciences
Patient Satisfaction - statistics & numerical data
Personal Construct Theory
Psychoanalytic Therapy - methods
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychopathology. Psychiatry
Psychotherapies. Psychological and clinical counseling
Psychotherapy
Self-Injurious Behavior - psychology
Self-Injurious Behavior - therapy
Selfinjury
Severity of Illness Index
Suicidal ideation
Treatment Outcome
Treatments
United Kingdom
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Summary:Evidence for the effectiveness of psychological therapies for people who self‐harm is limited. Personal construct theory provides a model of self‐harm and a framework for therapeutic intervention, which was evaluated in the present study. Sixty‐four adults presenting to Accident and Emergency departments following self‐harm were allocated to a personal construct psychotherapy or a ‘normal clinical practice’ condition. They completed various measures at assessment points pre‐ and post‐therapy. Repetition of self‐harm was assessed over a 3‐year period. Participants in the intervention condition showed significantly greater reduction in suicidal ideation, hopelessness and depression post‐treatment than the control group; and significantly more reconstruing at this point and 6‐month follow‐up. There was some evidence suggestive of a lower frequency of repetition of self‐harm in the intervention than in the control group. It is concluded that brief personal construct psychotherapy may be effective for people who self‐harm and merits further exploration.
ISSN:1476-0835
2044-8341
DOI:10.1348/147608306X102778