A meta-analysis of the relation between therapeutic alliance and treatment outcome in eating disorders.

The therapeutic alliance has demonstrated an association with favorable psychotherapeutic outcomes in the treatment of eating disorders (EDs). However, questions remain about the inter-relationships between early alliance, early symptom improvement, and treatment outcome. We conducted a meta-analysis on the relations among these constructs, and possible moderators of these relations, in psychosocial treatments for EDs. Twenty studies met inclusion criteria and supplied sufficient supplementary data. Results revealed small-to-moderate effect sizes, βs = 0.13 to 0.22 (p < .05), indicating that early symptom improvement was related to subsequent alliance quality and that alliance ratings also were related to subsequent symptom reduction. The relationship between early alliance and treatment outcome was partially accounted for by early symptom improvement. With regard to moderators, early alliance showed weaker associations with outcome in therapies with a strong behavioral component relative to nonbehavioral therapies. However, alliance showed stronger relations to outcome for younger (vs. older) patients, over and above the variance shared with early symptom improvement. In sum, early symptom reduction enhances therapeutic alliance and treatment outcome in EDs, but early alliance may require specific attention for younger patients and for those receiving nonbehaviorally oriented treatments

A Systematic Review of the Effectiveness of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) for Body Image Dissatisfaction and Weight Self-Stigma in Adults

© 2018, The Author(s). Body image dissatisfaction (BID) and weight self-stigma are prevalent and associated with physical and psychological ill-health. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) is increasingly employed for both, yet little is known about its effectiveness. Searches of 12 databases identified six studies using online, face-to-face or self-help ACT interventions for BID or weight self-stigma, of varying duration and intensity. Their effectiveness and quality were evaluated. Two reported improved BID, three improved weight self-stigma, and one reported no impact on weight self-stigma. Methodological issues (small sample sizes, lack of allocation concealment, attention control and long-term follow up) impacted the validity of findings. Due to the small number of studies and poor study quality, the effectiveness of ACT for BID and weight self-stigma remains unclear. Nonetheless findings suggest psychological flexibility may facilitate reduction in BID and weight self-stigma and indicate that brief online as well as lengthy face-to-face delivery may be useful. Suggestions for further research are made

Supporting Data 2_Sequences

CytB and CO1 sequences with associated GenBank accession numbers

Data from: Dynamic colonization history in a rediscovered Isle Royale carnivore

Island ecosystems are globally threatened, and efforts to restore historical communities are widespread. Such conservation efforts should be informed by accurate assessments of historical community composition to establish appropriate restoration targets. Isle Royale National Park is one of the most researched island ecosystems in the world, yet little is actually known about the biogeographic history of most Isle Royale taxa. To address this uncertainty and inform restoration targets, we determined the phylogeographic history of American martens (Martes americana), a species rediscovered on Isle Royale 76 years after presumed extirpation. We characterized the genetic composition of martens throughout the Great Lakes region using nuclear and mitochondrial markers, identified the source of Isle Royale martens using genetic structure analyses, and used demographic bottleneck tests to evaluate (eliminate redundancy of test). 3 competing colonization scenarios. Martens exhibited significant structure regionally, including a distinct Isle Royale cluster, but mitochondrial sequences revealed no monophyletic clades or evolutionarily significant units. Rather, martens were historically extirpated and recolonized Isle Royale from neighbouring Ontario, Canada in the late 20th century. These findings illustrate the underappreciated dynamics of island communities, underscore the importance of historical biogeography for establishing restoration baselines, and provide optimism for extirpated and declining Isle Royale vertebrates whose reintroductions have been widely debated

Energetic consequences of resource use diversity in a marine carnivore

Understanding how intraspecific variation in the use of prey resources impacts energy metabolism has strong implications for predicting long-term fitness and is critical for predicting population-to-community level responses to environmental change. Here, we examine the energetic consequences of variable prey resource use in a widely distributed marine carnivore, juvenile sand tiger sharks (Carcharias taurus). We used carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis to identify three primary prey resource pools—demersal omnivores, pelagic forage, and benthic detritivores and estimated the proportional assimilation of each resource using Bayesian mixing models. We then quantified how the utilization of these resource pools impacted the concentrations of six plasma lipids and how this varied by ontogeny. Sharks exhibited variable reliance on two of three predominant prey resource pools: demersal omnivores and pelagic forage. Resource use variation was a strong predictor of energetic condition, whereby individuals more reliant upon pelagic forage exhibited higher blood plasma concentrations of very low-density lipoproteins, cholesterol, and triglycerides. These findings underscore how intraspecific variation in resource use may impact the energy metabolism of animals, and more broadly, that natural and anthropogenically driven fluctuations in prey resources could have longer term energetic consequences