Ideas about the treatment of PD are changing with the development of new approaches, treatment outcome studies, and changing ideas about etiology. The evidence suggests that no single form of therapy is more effective than the rest. At the same time, traditional assumptions on which most treatments are based-that the disorder arises from psychosocial adversity-have been supplemented with an understanding of genetic influences and the complex interplay of genes and environment. These developments question the merits of relying on a specific school of therapy when treating PD. Rather, they This paper proposes a systematic framework for treating personality disorder, based on research on the nature and origins of the disorder and treatment outcome. It adopts an eclectic approach that combines interventions from different therapeutic models and delivers them in an integrated and systematic manner. Coordination of multiple interventions is achieved by emphasizing the nonspecific component of therapy, especially the treatment frame and generic interventions. Specific interventions drawn from different treatment models, including medication, are built onto this foundation as needed to tailor treatment to the individual. Coordination and integration are also achieved by conceptualizing treatment as progressing through a series of phases, each addressing different problems with different specific interventions. Five phases are described: safety, containment, regulation and control, exploration and change, and integration and synthesis. During the earlier phases, structured behavioural and cognitive interventions and medication predominate. Later in treatment, these interventions are supplemented with less structured psychodynamic, interpersonal, and constructionist strategies to explore and change maladaptive interpersonal patterns, cognitions, and traits and to forge a more integrated and adaptive self-structure or identity. Information on author affiliations appears at the end of the article.
Clinical Implications· A systematic framework for treating PD is proposed. · An integrated model is described that combines interventions from multiple therapeutic approaches. · Where possible, an evidence-based approach is adopted.
Limitations· The empirical basis for the approach is limited by the relative lack of studies of treatment efficacy. · Rational rather than empirical considerations determined the choice of many intervention strategies. · The approach has not been directly evaluated.