Disordered eating behaviors and reward sensitivity

This research evaluated the extent to which reward sensitivity demonstrated associations with binge and purge behavior frequency. A verbal operant conditioning task designed to assess conditionability to reward cues was administered to a sample of 34 women who exhibited disordered eating patterns for at least I month prior to study participation. Reward sensitivity significantly correlated with the average weekly frequency of purge (r = 0.44) but not binge behaviors. These findings suggest that reward sensitivity has some associations with aspects of disordered eating and therefore may have relevance for theories on the maintenance of some forms of eating disorder-related behavior.