Abstract
This review focuses on the empirical literature which evaluates mentalization based treatment (MBT) for borderline personality disorder (BPD). After outlining the treatment ethos, the four studies which are focused on are briefly described. The empirical literature is evaluated in terms of strengths and weaknesses with a focus on three core areas 1) participants; 2) deliverance of therapy and 3) outcome measures. The review concludes that MBT appears to be effective at significantly improving the quality of life of people with BPD on a wide range of outcome measures compared with both treatment as usual and structured clinical management. However, more research is needed into the mechanism of change that occurs during MBT and the range of outcome measures needs to be consistent and developed to be reflective of what is important to the service user.