Effectiveness Study of a Dialectical Behavioral Treatment for Families of Adolescents With Emotional Instability (FAL)

Emotional instability disorder (IE) is appreciable since adolescence, and crises (suicidal ideation, self-harm, impulsive acts and brief psychotic episodes) carry a high use of health resources, coupled with the suffering of families who feel helpless and difficulties in handling.

The purpose of the study is to evaluate the effectiveness of a dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) for parents of adolescents with IE who are in treatment in the different network devices of Child and Adolescent Mental Health of the Community of Madrid. Treatment goals are the development of communication skills, validation and crisis management as well as increase understanding and competence of the pathology.

To evaluate the effectiveness of the DBT family group intervention, it is compared with a group of non-treatment or "treatment as usual" (outpatient treatment and parents without children specific group treatment). The DBT intervention will begin with two individual sessions with parents of patients and 10 theoretical and practical seminars in group format (6-7 families) following the model proposed by Marsha Linehan. The DBT interventions will be added to "standard treatment" that a patient with IE receives in the investigative devices.

The result of these interventions will be measured after the end of treatment and after 6 and 12 months after the treatment ends. The variables considered are family communication, cognitive skills, emotional and behavioral coping clinical in parents and as indirect measures of change in adolescents health resources used as , suicidal gestures, self-harm or aggressive behavior.