A Type 2 randomized clinical trial (RCT) of psychosocial treatment for avoidant personality disorder compared three group-administered behavioral interventions (graded exposure, standard social skills training, intimacy-focused social skills training) with a wait-list control; although all three treatments were more efficacious than the control condition, no differences among the treatments were identified either after the 10-week treatment or at follow-up. For the treatment of borderline personality disorder, a Type 1 RCT randomized 101 women with recent suicidal and self-injurious behaviors and borderline personality disorder to either dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) or community-treatment-by-experts psychotherapists (CTBE). Over the 2-year treatment and follow-up period, DBT was superior to CTBE on rates of suicide attempt, hospi-talization for suicide ideation, and overall medical risk (combining suicide attempts and self-injurious acts). Patients in the DBT group were also less likely to drop out of treatment and had fewer psychiatric emergency room visits and fewer psychiatric hospitalizations. There were no significant group differences on measures of depression, reasons for living, and suicide ideation, with patients in both treatment groups improving significantly on these measures. Four additional Type 2 and Type 3 studies support the efficacy of DBT as a treatment for borderline personality disorder with or without comorbid substance abuse or dependence. No RCTs of psychological treatment for other personality disorders have been reported. Several review articles have found a consistent adverse impact of personality disorders on outcomes of treatment for a wide range of Axis I disorders.
Social skills training for drug users under treatment: a pilot study with follow-up
