Objectives
The present pilot study sought to compare a compassion‐focused therapy (CFT)‐based self‐help intervention for binge eating disorder (BED) to a behaviourally based intervention.
Design
Forty‐one individuals with BED were randomly assigned to 3 weeks of food planning plus self‐compassion exercises; food planning plus behavioural strategies; or a wait‐list control condition.
Methods
Participants completed weekly measures of binge eating and self‐compassion; pre‐ and post‐intervention measures of eating disorder pathology and depressive symptoms; and a baseline measure assessing fear of self‐compassion.
Results
Results showed that: (1) perceived credibility, expectancy, and compliance did not differ between the two interventions; (2) both interventions reduced weekly binge days more than the control condition; (3) the self‐compassion intervention reduced global eating disorder pathology, eating concerns, and weight concerns more than the other conditions; (4) the self‐compassion intervention increased self‐compassion more than the other conditions; and (5) participants low in fear of self‐compassion derived significantly more benefits from the self‐compassion intervention than those high in fear of self‐compassion.
Conclusions
Findings offer preliminary support for the usefulness of CFT‐based interventions for BED sufferers. Results also suggest that for individuals to benefit from self‐compassion training, assessing and lowering fear of self‐compassion will be crucial.
Practitioner points
- Individuals with BED perceive self‐compassion training self‐help interventions, derived from CFT, to be as credible and as likely to help as behaviourally based interventions.
- The cultivation of self‐compassion may be an effective approach for reducing binge eating, and eating, and weight concerns in individuals with BED.
- Teaching individuals with BED CFT‐based self‐help exercises may increase their self‐compassion levels over a short period of time.
- It may be important for clinicians to assess and target clients' fear of self‐compassion for clients to benefit from self‐compassion training interventions.