The Effectiveness of Schema Therapy on Emotional Regulation Strategies and Binge Eating Behaviors in Women with Obesity

Akbarzadeh, Saeedeh Sadat; Bayyazi, Mohammad Hossein; Norouzi, Maryam

doi:10.22034/rip.2025.514434.1093

The Effectiveness of Schema Therapy on Emotional Regulation Strategies and Binge Eating Behaviors in Women with Obesity

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Saeedeh Sadat Akbarzadeh ¹

Mohammad Hossein Bayyazi ²

Maryam Norouzi ¹

¹ MSc. in Clinical Psychology, Torbat-e Jam, Islamic Azad University, Torbat-e Jam , Iran

² Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, Torbat-e Jam Branch, Islamic Azad University, Torbat-e Jam, Iran

10.22034/rip.2025.514434.1093

Abstract

Abstract
The present study aimed to determine the effectiveness of schema therapy on emotional regulation strategies and binge eating behaviors in women with obesity. The research method was quasi-experimental with a pretest-posttest design and a control group. The statistical population consisted of 100 women with obesity who visited an obesity treatment center in Mashhad (a city in Iran) in 2023. After initial screening and diagnosis, 30 women were selected through purposive sampling and randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. Data were collected using the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ) and the Binge Eating Scale (BES). The experimental group underwent 16 sessions of schema therapy (90 minutes per session, once a week), while the control group received no intervention during this period. Multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA) results indicated that schema therapy significantly improved emotional regulation strategies and reduced binge eating behaviors (P < 0.001). Accordingly, schema therapy can be considered an effective intervention for enhancing emotional regulation strategies and reducing binge eating behaviors in women with obesity.

Keywords

binge eating behaviors

emotion regulation

schema therapy

Subjects