Developing a Personalized Virtual Coach for Emotional Eaters 33 2 21-22]. Currently, CBT is considered the state-of-the-art in treating eating disorders, aimed at treating eating disorders such as Boulimia Nervosa (BN), Anorexia Nervosa (AN) and Eating Disorders Not Otherwise Specified (EDNOS). The core of these eating disorders is the patient’s over-evaluation of his control of weight, shape and/or eating. The efficacy of DBT for the treatment of Binge Eating Disorder (BED) and emotional eating behaviour has been demonstrated in the results of various studies and trials [23-26]. The dialectical focus One of the most powerful ‘mechanisms of change’ or mediators in DBT is its dialectical focus. Since an invalidating environment plays an important role in the lives of emotional eaters, it is important that they are treated with a well-balanced mix of being validated in their perception of negative emotions and being confronted with a practical focus on changing problem behaviour. “Based in the biosocial theory, DBT has a unique approach to targeting behavioural dysfunction that is not typically seen among other cognitivebehavioural treatments; one key difference is the emphasis placed on emotions and emotion dysregulation.” [20]. DBT and eHealth There is a broad variety of eHealth self-management treatments available but the majority focus on weight loss and behaviour change. The discussion on the effectiveness of such interventions is progressing only slowly [27-33]. Little knowledge in the field of eHealth treatment using Dialectical Behaviour Therapy or even emotion regulation has been acquired so far, let alone about emotion regulation focused on emotional eating behaviour. The results of one quasi-experimental study on the effectiveness of the mobile “DBT Coach”, that focused only on one particular skill in DBT (Opposite Action), showed that emotion intensity decreased within each coaching session in participants suffering fromBorderline Personality Disorder [34-35]. The target group uses the DBT Coach when it is needed most for them – after engaging in dysfunctional behaviour. One paper discusses the lack of user-friendliness of a DBT self-management mHealth application [36]. A small number of DBT-based self-management mHealth apps can be found in the Google Play Store and in the Apple App Store. However, they typically lack scientific grounding, user involvement in the design process, psychological aspects, and personalization. Virtual coach and behaviour change Substantial research has been dedicated to the employment of virtual coaches [37-38]. A virtual coach, as an interactive and self-learning persuasive system, can assist in attitude and/or long term behaviour change by providing immediate and personalised support
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