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Relation among self-defeating personality, troubled eating patterns, and dissociation
1Department of Psychology, Southern Illinois University Carbondale 62901-6502, USA.
Psychological Reports
|June 1, 1995
Summary
This study found small correlations between self-defeating personality traits and bulimic symptoms or dissociative experiences in college women, suggesting shared psychopathology rather than direct links.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Clinical Psychology
- Psychopathology
Background:
- Self-defeating personality traits are theorized to relate to eating disorders and dissociative experiences.
- Previous research suggests potential links between these psychological constructs.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the correlations between self-defeating personality, bulimic symptoms, and dissociative experiences in college women.
- To explore the relationship between the Bulimia Test-Revised and the Dissociative Experiences Scale.
Main Methods:
- A sample of 165 college women completed measures of self-defeating personality, bulimic symptoms (Bulimia Test-Revised), and dissociative experiences (Dissociative Experiences Scale).
- Correlational analyses were performed to examine the relationships between the scores.
Main Results:
- Small, significant positive correlations were observed between self-defeating personality scores and scores on the Bulimia Test-Revised (r = .27).
- A small, significant positive correlation was found between self-defeating personality scores and Dissociative Experiences Scale scores (r = .20).
- The correlation between the Bulimia Test-Revised and the Dissociative Experiences Scale was .26.
Conclusions:
- The observed small correlations suggest that higher scores on these measures may reflect a general increase in psychopathology.
- Theoretical and empirical expectations for stronger relationships were not met, possibly due to the shared indicator of psychological distress.