Treatment outcomes in older adults with hoarding disorder: The impact of self‐control, boredom and social support

• Published in: Australasian journal on ageing Vol. 39; no. 4; pp. 375 - 380
• Main Authors: Weiss, Emily R., Landers, Alyssa, Todman, McWelling, Roane, David M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Australia 01.12.2020
• Subjects: boredom; hoarding; hoarding disorder; self‐control; social support; boredom; social support; self-control; hoarding; hoarding disorder
• ISSN: 1440-6381; 1741-6612
• DOI: 10.1111/ajag.12817

Objectives Hoarding disorder in older adults often develops in the context of co‐occurring psychosocial maladies, and treatment response tends to be suboptimal. This preliminary investigation explored several ageing‐related factors and their relationship to hoarding symptom severity (HSS), and examined treatment response to 15 sessions of cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) with in‐home support. Methods Twenty‐nine participants (Mage = 67) completed self‐report questionnaires measuring HSS, self‐control, indecisiveness, depression, loneliness, social support and boredom, before (T1) and after (T2) treatment. Results At T1, HSS was associated marginally with loneliness and significantly with all other variables, except social support. At T2, HSS and depression decreased significantly and only boredom and self‐control remained associated with HSS. Attrition rates were high, and those with low social support were more likely to discontinue treatment prematurely. Conclusions Increasing social support may improve treatment retention, and pre‐emptively reducing sources of boredom and increasing self‐control during treatment might improve outcomes for older adults with hoarding disorder.