Negative reinforcement eating expectancies, emotion dysregulation, and symptoms of bulimia nervosa.

Full Abstract

OBJECTIVE: Research suggests that emotion dysregulation or difficulties in the modulation of emotional experience constitute risk for eating disorders. Recent work has also highlighted the role of certain eating-related cognitions, specifically expectations of negative emotional reinforcement from eating, in the development of disturbed eating patterns. However, it is unclear whether these expectancies are merely a dimension of a general inability to regulate emotions effectively or rather a unique cognitive-affective risk factor for the development of an eating disorder. This study examines the unique contribution of eating expectancies to symptoms of bulimia nervosa (BN) after controlling for two dimensions of emotion dysregulation (alexithymia and experiential avoidance) previously implicated in the phenomenology of eating disorders. METHOD: Participants were 115 undergraduate women who self-reported demographics, alexithymia, experiential avoidance, eating expectancies, and symptoms of BN. RESULTS: Eating expectancies uniquely contributed 12.4% of the variance in symptoms of BN, F(2, 108) = 11.74, p < .001. The final model was statistically significant, F(6, 108) = 13.62, p < .001, and accounted for 40.0% of the variance in symptoms of BN. DISCUSSION: These results suggest that individuals who expect eating to provide emotional relief may be especially susceptible to disordered eating. Findings are discussed in terms of emotional risk models and clinical interventions for BN.

Author information

Author/s: Hayaki, Jumi (J);

Affiliation: Department of Psychology, College of the Holy Cross, 1 College Street, Worcester, Massachusetts 01610, USA. jhayaki(-atsign-)holycross.edu

Grants: (Agency:Howard Hughes Medical Institute)

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't; Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

Journal: The International journal of eating disorders (Int J Eat Disord), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2009-Sep; vol 42 (issue 6) : pp 552-6

Dates: Created 2009/08/24; Completed 2009/11/02;

PMID: 19172595, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 11/2/2009, IMS Date: )

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

External Links for this article
(including full text providers, if available):

Click Electronic Full-text Provider Links to see options for finding the electronic full text links to this article. Note there may be a subscription or fee required for access to the full text. See our FAQ for information on finding FREE full text articles.

This article may also be located in paper journal collections available in many libraries. Use the Journal and Publication Information above to find the full article.