title: Body dysmorphic disorder: implications for its validity as a DSM-III-R clinical syndrome.
abstract: A sample of 258 college students responded to three items in Likert-format designed by the authors to elicit information relating directly to the three criteria for body-dysmorphic disorder described in DSM-III-R (1987). 70% of the participants endorsed some agreement with an item regarding dissatisfaction with some aspect(s) of their bodies. 46% indicated some preoccupation with this aspect of their appearance, and 48% indicated some exaggeration of their perceived body image. Sex differences were significant on all three items. 28% of the sample endorsed all three of the items taken together. These results raise questions about the utility of a diagnosis which, as it is currently defined, could conceivably apply to a large percentage of the population and which disproportionately targets women.
authors.forename: S N
authors.initials: SN
authors.lastname: Fitts
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Gibson
authors.forename: C A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Redding
authors.forename: P J
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Deiter
mesh_terms: D001290:Attitude; D001828:Body Image; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008370:Manuals as Topic / Q000592:standards; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011594:Psychometrics; D012737:Sex Factors; D013001:Somatoform Disorders / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires