title: Exploring Patients' Experiences of Eating Disorder Treatment Services From a Motivational Perspective.
abstract: This study employed qualitative methods to explore eating disorder (ED) patients' perspectives on their treatment experiences to gain insight into those factors that influenced their motivational trajectory. Semistructured interviews were conducted with a purposive female sample of current (N = 11) and discharged (N = 3) ED service users, aged 18 to 31 years (M = 23.21, SD = 4.19). An interpretive thematic analytic approach, comprising both inductive and deductive methods of analysis, was employed to identify key themes in the data. Self-determination theory (SDT) provided a conceptual lens for analyzing data. Participants highlighted that factors such as physical design and nature of the treatment environment, relational aspects of care, and therapeutic methods all played a role in treatment engagement. The findings highlight ways in which current ED services might more effectively meet the needs of service users and support the utility of applying SDT to the study of motivational dynamics in the treatment of EDs.
authors.affiliation: Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland.
authors.forename: Grace
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sheridan
authors.affiliation: Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland siobhain.mcardle@dcu.ie.
authors.forename: Siobhain
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: McArdle
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001068:Feeding and Eating Disorders / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D009042:Motivation; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Ireland; eating disorders; health care experiences; qualitative; self-determination theory; thematic analysis