What is the most appropriate psychotherapy for obsessive-compulsive disorder?

What is the most appropriate psychotherapy for obsessive-compulsive disorder?

• A. Psychoanalysis
• B. Interpersonal therapy
• C. Supportive therapy
• D. Cognitive behavioral therapy

Answer: (D)

Cognitive behavioral therapy, particularly exposure and response prevention, is the most effective psychotherapy for obsessive-compulsive disorder. ERP works by gradually exposing you to situations or thoughts that trigger obsessions while teaching you to resist the urge to perform the compulsive behavior. With repeated exposure and prevented rituals, the anxiety linked to the obsessions diminishes over time, and the need to perform compulsions decreases. This approach directly targets the learning processes that maintain OCD—how feared thoughts provoke anxiety and how the compulsive acts temporarily reduce that distress. It has the strongest, most consistent evidence base for OCD compared with other therapies. Psychoanalysis focuses on deep unconscious conflicts and isn’t supported as a first-line treatment for OCD. Interpersonal therapy concentrates on relationship issues rather than OCD symptoms, and supportive therapy provides general encouragement without the specific skills to reduce obsessions and compulsions.

Cognitive behavioral therapy, particularly exposure and response prevention, is the most effective psychotherapy for obsessive-compulsive disorder. ERP works by gradually exposing you to situations or thoughts that trigger obsessions while teaching you to resist the urge to perform the compulsive behavior. With repeated exposure and prevented rituals, the anxiety linked to the obsessions diminishes over time, and the need to perform compulsions decreases.

This approach directly targets the learning processes that maintain OCD—how feared thoughts provoke anxiety and how the compulsive acts temporarily reduce that distress. It has the strongest, most consistent evidence base for OCD compared with other therapies. Psychoanalysis focuses on deep unconscious conflicts and isn’t supported as a first-line treatment for OCD. Interpersonal therapy concentrates on relationship issues rather than OCD symptoms, and supportive therapy provides general encouragement without the specific skills to reduce obsessions and compulsions.