Emotion and the Acceptance-based Approaches to the Anxiety Disorders

Recent years have seen an eruption of interest and subsequent research on what are now being termed, acceptance-based behavioral treatments (Orsillo, Roemer, &Holowka, 2005). Approaches such as dialectical behavior therapy (DBT; Linehan, 1993a), acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT; S. C. Hayes, Strosahl, & Wilson, 1999), and mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT; Segal, Williams, & Teasdale, 2002) have expanded the boundaries of the cognitive-behavioral paradigm considerably. These approaches have offered novel solutions to vexing problems (e.g., relapse, poor outcome in functionality, and life satisfaction) inpersonalitydisorders (Linehan, 1993a), depression (Segal et al. 2002), and, particularly, anxiety disorders (Eifert & Forsyth, 2005; S. C. Hayes et al., 1999; Roemer&Orsillo, 2005). Cognitive–behavioral approaches to the anxiety disorders have historicallydemonstratedconsiderable efficacy (seeChambless&Gillis, 1993), but it has become increasingly clear that for more complex, chronic, and refractory presentations of these conditions, further intervention may be required to instill a lasting sense of change, functionality, and life satisfaction (Newman, 2000).