COGNITIVE THERAPY IN THE TREATMENT OF PATIENTS WITH BORDERLINE PERSONALITY-DISORDERS

Cognitive therapy, originally conceived for the treatment of emotional illnesses, has been successively used also in treating patients with more severe mental disorders. In this article, the results obtained by Shearin & Linehan (this volume) in a few controlled trials of dialect ical behavior therapy in patients with borderline personality disorder s are discussed. Differences between the treatment approach followed b y Shearin and Linehan, which focuses on the modification of specific b ehaviors, and that favored by the author, which is aimed at restructur ing dysfunctional working models of self and environment, are highligh ted. In the conclusion it is emphasized that the use of a structured, didactic and cognitive-behaviorally oriented approach focused on perso nal growth might represent an important and much wanted breakthrough i n the treatment of the most disturbed patients with a borderline perso nality disorder.