Self-help versus therapist-led group cognitive-behavioral treatment of binge eating disorder at follow-up

Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the longer-term outcom e of three group cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) delivery models for the treatment of binge eating disorder (BED). Method: Fifty-one participants w ere assigned to one of three conditions. In the therapist-led condition (TL ; n = 16), a psychologist provided psychoeducational information for the fi rst half hour and led a group discussion for the second half hour of each s ession. In the partial self-help condition (PSH; n = 19), participants view ed a 30-min psychoeducational videotape, followed by a therapist-led discus sion. In the structured self-help condition (SSH; n = 16), participants wat ched a psychoeducational videotape and led their own discussion. Results: R eductions in binge eating episodes and associated symptoms were observed fo r all three treatments at post, 1-month, 6-month, and 1-year follow-up, wit h no significant differences among the three conditions. Discussion: These findings suggest that CBT for BED can be delivered successfully using video tape and a structured self-help group format and that improvements in binge eating are maintained up to 1 year follow-up. (C) 2001 by John Wiley & Son s, Inc.