Eating disorders and sense of self: a learning theory conceptualization

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Developmental Psychology
• Clinical Psychology

Background:

• A learning theory perspective suggests that a deficient sense of self arises from caregivers not recognizing or labeling a child's internal experiences.
• Interoceptive awareness (IA) is crucial for understanding and differentiating internal bodily sensations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between the process of building a sense of self, interoceptive awareness (IA), and the risk for eating disorders.
• To evaluate how the Experience of Self Scale (EOSS) relates to IA levels and eating disorder risk.

Main Methods:

• 127 students completed the Eating Disorders Inventory-3 (EDI-3) and the Experience of Self Scale (EOSS).
• EDI-3 subscales were categorized as IA-relevant or Not IA-relevant, serving as a measure of IA level.
• Product-moment correlations and multiple regression modeling were used to analyze the data.

Main Results:

• Results indicated a relationship between IA level and the sense of self process, with few exceptions.
• The study found correlations between EOSS scores and IA-relevant, Not IA-relevant, and Eating Disorder risk scores from the EDI-3.

Conclusions:

• Findings suggest a link between interoceptive awareness and the development of a sense of self.
• Further research is warranted to explore this relationship, which could inform the prevention and treatment of eating disorders and related issues.