1. Treatments in Psychology By Georgia Hunt

2. The Social Approach Family Therapy What is Family Therapy? In family therapy sessions, a therapist will show family members how to deal with certain situations caused by the eating disorder. There are 3 phases within the process: 1)Weight restoration 2)Return to independent eating 3)Healthy adolescent development Locke and Grange (2001) created a treatment manual using family therapy techniques, making this treatment able to be developed further and for research to be compared for effectiveness.

3. Family Therapy Strengths & Weaknesses Strengths- Disorder and person are separated allowing blame to be taken off anorexic sufferer. The sufferer isn’t the only person that goes through therapy, the family does too. Meaning a greater chance of not relapsing. Weaknesses- It can take a long time as cooperation is needed from all members of the family. Someone with severe anorexia may not see themselves as ill and could not be willing to work with a therapist.

4. The Cognitive Approach Cognitive Behavioural Therapy What is Cognitive Behavioural Therapy? It is a way of talking about how you think about yourself, the world and other people and also how what you do affects your thoughts and feelings. CBT can help you to change how you think and what you do; these changes can help you to feel better. Unlike some of the other talking treatments, it focuses on the 'here and now' problems and difficulties. Instead of focusing on the causes of your distress or symptoms in the past, it looks for ways to improve your state of mind now. William Bradshaw (1998) found a positive effect from a 3 year CBT treatment in a woman with schizophrenia.

5. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Strengths and Weaknesses Strengths- Bradshaw (1998) over a 3 year case study found major improvement in psychosocial functioning, reduction of hospitalizations, and attainment of treatment goals in a women suffering from schizophrenia. CBT is effective on patients who do not respond to the drugs and has the added benefit of not producing any side effects. Weaknesses- The cognitive model can be quite narrow, thinking is just one part of human functioning, broader issues need to be addressed. It doesn’t work for everyone, works on ‘here and now’ and doesn’t look into past and that can be useful.

6. The Psychodynamic Approach Free Association What is Free Association? Free association is a type of therapy designed to enable the person to cope better with any internal conflicts that are causing disturbance. Key words are given by the therapist to allow the person to talk freely about memories associated with this word. This info given without inhibition by the person can contain clues regarding the source of unconscious anxiety. Freud used this treatment within his own therapy sessions.

7. Free Association Strengths and Weaknesses Strengths Free Association is in depth and includes all aspects of functioning from early childhood onwards. Takes all experiences into account. Allows access to the unconscious, which provides for interpretation. Weaknesses May be inappropriate as encourages the person to talk about issues on their mind; reinforce thoughts that are already obsessive. Extremely subjective, interpretation from what the client says can be considered unscientific.

8. The Biological Approach Use of Drugs- Chemotherapy What is Chemotherapy? Drug treatment can allow for some form of natural functioning to occur. The patient is given drugs to stop symptoms of the illness. Drug treatment can be called Chemotherapy, which is an overall term for therapy using chemicals. For example- Schizophrenics are given drugs called ‘antipsychotic’ and they work by suppressing hallucinations and delusions. They work by blocking dopamine receptors so that there is no excess dopamine (evidence has shown excess dopamine is present in schizophrenia sufferers.)

9. Use of Drugs- Chemotherapy Strengths and Weaknesses Strengths- Allows for the patient to live within society, avoiding institutionalised by a long-time stay in hospital. Pickar et al (1991) compared the effectiveness of clozapine with other neuroleptics and a placebo drug. Found clozapine was most effective in treating symptoms. Placebo least effective. Weaknesses- Side effects are a huge problem as they can put people off taking drugs. The patient has to be compliant with taking the drugs otherwise it can be a huge barrier to treatment, leading to relapse.