Stress, coping, and crisis support in eating disorders.
OBJECTIVE
Recent research has supported the role of stress in the development and maintenance of eating disorders. However, coping and crisis support, important aspects of this stress process, have received little systematic attention. The cognitive-transactional approach to coping emphasizes the importance of the relationship between the individual and the particular problematic situation and yet most studies investigating coping in eating disorders have failed to measure situation-specific coping.


METHODS
The present study used semistructured interviews to measure coping and crisis support in response to severe events and/or marked difficulties in 12 women with anorexia nervosa (AN), 21 women with bulimia nervosa (BN), and 21 women without an eating disorder (non-ED).


RESULTS
Women with eating disorders were more likely to use cognitive avoidance or cognitive rumination and were less likely to downplay their problems. In addition, BN subjects were more likely to blame themselves and were less likely to receive crisis support from a core-tie. Overall, women with eating disorders were less likely to be masterful in response to crises than women without eating disorders.


CONCLUSIONS
It is concluded that women with eating disorders are less effective in their coping than women without eating disorders.
Psychiatry Department, Institute of Psychiatry, London, United Kingdom.
N A
NA
Troop
A
A
Holbrey
J L
JL
Treasure
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D000856:Anorexia Nervosa / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D002032:Bulimia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D003674:Defense Mechanisms; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007389:Internal-External Control; D008016:Life Change Events; D010552:Personality Assessment; D011340:Problem Solving; D012944:Social Support; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000150:complications*