Basic Body Awareness Therapy , assessment, treatment and interaction

The purpose of the present thesis was to investigate Basic Body Awareness Therapy (Basic BAT) in psychiatric outpatient care and the BAS-H, an assessment method for analysing movements and movement behaviour. Important factors in the interaction, therapeutic relationship and working alliance between patient and physiotherapist (PT) were also explored. The results revealed the construct validity of the BAS-H assessment to be adequate and in accordance with theoretical expectations. The responsiveness to change of the BAS-H assessment was also found to be acceptable after a short-term treatment with Basic BAT. The Basic BAT treatment in addition to treatment as usual as compared to treatment as usual only, in a study comprising 77 patients in psychiatric outpatient care, turned out to be effective in the short-term perspective. Improvements with regard to the quality of movements and movement behaviour, psychiatric symptoms and attitudes towards the body and movement and self-efficacy were found in the group receiving Basic BAT. Interaction between patient and PT was considered to be important to outcome and the activation of the patients? resources according to nominated expert PTs working in both primary health-care and psychiatric care. The patients? experience of Basic BAT in psychiatric care revealed that improvements of balance and posture were the most commonly reported experiences. Personal involvement and the ability to practise alone characterised the patients reporting the most profound improvements in bodily, psychological and social terms. The working alliance construct was found to be useful in the analysis of interaction in physiotherapy