Core beliefs and bulimic symptomatology in non-eating-disordered women: the mediating role of borderline characteristics.
OBJECTIVE
To establish whether borderline personality disorder symptoms play a mediating role in the relationship between early maladaptive schemata and bulimic symptomatology, using a nonclinical sample.


METHODS
Sixty-one female undergraduate students completed the Bulimic Investigatory Test, Edinburgh (BITE), the Borderline Syndrome Index (BSI), and the short form of the Young Schema Questionnaire (YSQ).


RESULTS
Borderline symptoms were found to be a perfect mediator in the relationship between defectiveness/shame beliefs and bulimic symptomatology.


CONCLUSIONS
A model is proposed suggesting that the functional utility of bulimic behaviors might be in counteracting the negative emotions associated with borderline symptoms.
Meyer
C
C
Department of Psychology, The University of Warwick, Coventry, United Kingdom. c.meyer@warwick.ac.uk
Leung
N
N
Feary
R
R
Mann
B
B
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002032:Bulimia / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D003469:Culture; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D012720:Severity of Illness Index