Dissociation in bulimic and non-eating-disordered women

A relationship between dissociative experiences and the eating disorders has been reported. However the nature of that link is not clearly understood. This study investigates the links between dissociation (as measured by the Dissociative Experiences Scale-DES II) and eating psychopathology in a clinical group of bulimic women and a nonclinical group of undergraduates. In the nonclinical group, specific dissociative styles were found to be linked with bulimic attitudes on the Eating Attitudes Test. In the eating-disordered group, there was an association between the scales of the DES II and frequency of bringing. This association was primarily due to the effects of the dissociative style of absorption (e.g., daydreaming). Suggestions are made for further research, and the clinical implications of the findings are discussed.