Dieting control beliefs and disordered eating

✍ Scribed by Adrian Furnham; Lorna Atkins

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1997
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 136 KB
• Volume: 5
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 1072-4133
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1099-0968(199712)5:4<278::aid-erv171>3.0.co;2-g

✦ Synopsis

The Eating Disorder Inventory, the Dieting Beliefs Scale and a Self-Esteem Scale were completed by a group of 28 female-eating-disorder patients and 76 normal' female undergraduates. The aim of the study was to investigate weight locus of control (instrumental/internal versus fatalistic/external beliefs concerning control of personal weight) differences between the two groups. Results indicated that the clinical group were signi®cantly more internal in their dieting control beliefs, although this was only substantiated when comparing restricters' (anorexics) with normals. `Bingers' (bulimics and compulsive eaters) did not signi®cantly differ from normals with regards to their internal±external orientation. The study stands in direct contrast to a number of previously reported ®ndings, and also raises doubts concerning the internal consistency of the Dieting Beliefs Scale.