An integration of feminist and self-psychological approaches to bulimia nervosa

Theoretical frameworks have guided approaches to treatment for the eating disorders. While unitary models were characteristic of earlier eras, more recent formulations have attempted to improve understanding by integrating various schools of thought (1). Several of these have placed cultural factors in the context of individual and familial predispositions. A weakness of these models has been the relative lack of understanding of the means by which these cultural values create mechanisms for expression of these disorders in specific women. In this manuscript I will explore the theoretical framework which places eating disorders in the context of socialization and culture, and integrate this with our current understanding of the individual psychopathological factors that enhance a woman's susceptibility to eating disorders. This exploration of specific mechanisms has implications for the development of efficacious models of treatment.