Schema Therapy for Cluster C Personality Disorders Treating Dependent, Avoidant and Obsessive-Compulsive Clients

Personality disorders are categorised into three ‘ clusters’ , each containing several specific disorders with common characteristics that differentiate them from those contained in the other clusters. Schema therapy was developed primarily to manage and treat ‘ cluster B’ personality disorders, especially borderline personality disorder, and it has a robust evidence base in this area. Research studies have shown that schema therapy is also an effective treatment for clients with ‘ cluster C’ personality disorders – dependent personality disorder, avoidant personality disorder and obsessive-compulsive personality disorder – but only if a number of important adaptations and adjustments to the treatment protocol are made. Written by well-known experts in the field, this is the first book to explore the theory and practice of using schema therapy to treat individuals with ‘ cluster C’ personality disorders. Part of the Schema Therapy Approaches and Resources series, following the success of Chairwork, Imagery Rescripting and Schema Therapy: A Phase-Oriented Approach.

Remco van der Wijngaart is a psychologist and psychotherapist. He worked for twenty years in an academic department of a mental health institution, participating in treatment studies across a wide range of disorders. He is currently a therapist, trainer and supervisor in CBT and schema therapy in private practice. He has been trained by Jeff Young, Aaron Beck, and Joan Farrell, and is a former Vice President of the International Society of Schema Therapy. Hannie van Genderen is a psychotherapist, clinical psychologist, supervisor and trainer in individual and group schema therapy. She has been involved with schema therapy for personality disorders in the Netherlands from its early beginnings, collaborating for many years with Arnoud Arntz at the University of Maastricht, and she was a founder of the Dutch Schema Therapy Society and the International Society of Schema Therapy.

Foreword by Arnoud Arntz Acknowledgements 1. Introduction 2. Developments in schema therapy – concepts and definitions 3. Case conceptualization for Cluster C personality disorders 4. From case conceptualization to treatment 5. Dependent Personality Disorder 6. Avoidant Personality Disorder 7. Obsessive-Compulsive Personality Disorder 8. The middle phase of treatment 9. The final phase of treatment – changing behaviour patterns 10. Conclusion References Appendix: Modes