The readiness and motivation interview: A symptom-specific measure of readiness for change in the eating disorders

Ambivalence about recovery is a central feature of anorexia nervosa, and re sistance to recovery in the eating disorders is common. Careful assessment of motivation and readiness may be useful in treatment planning: in order t o reduce the likelihood of dropout and treatment noncompliance. This paper describes the Readiness and Motivation Interview, for Eating Disorders (RMI ), a semi-structured assessment tool that elicits information on individual s' experience of, and attachment to their symptoms. The RMI allows for read iness and motivation for change status to be determined, and assesses the e xtent to which change, when occurring, is for internal versus external reas ons. In contrast to more commonly used global measures of stage of change, the RMI provides detailed symptom-specific information about readiness and motivation in the eating disorders. Copyright (C) 1999 John Wiley & Sons, L td and Eating Disorders Association.