Coping skills in Japanese women with eating disorders

The aim of this study was to investigate coping skills in the different types of eating disorders in Japan. Groups of patients with eating disorders diagnosed with DSM-IV and 22 controls were studied. Coping skills were assessed with the Stress Coping Inventory. The mean Problem-focused coping score tended to be lower in the bulimia nervosa purging-type group (n = 20) than in the control group. The former group and the bulimia nervosa nonpurging-type group (n = 6) used significantly less planful problem solving and less positive reappraisal coping than the control group, while the anorexia nervosa restricting-type group of 11 tended to use less positive reappraisal, and the anorexia nervosa binge-eating/purging-type (n = 11) tended to use less planful problem solving and less positive reappraisal than the control group. As some uses of coping skills by patients with eating disorders were lower than those of the control group, developing coping skills may be useful in treatment for eating disorders in Japan.