title: Childhood emotional abuse and eating symptoms in bulimic disorders: an examination of possible mediating variables.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  We sought to estimate prevalences of childhood emotional abuse (CEA) in bulimic and normal-eater control groups, and to replicate previous findings linking CEA to severity of eating symptoms in BN. We also examined potential mediators of the link between CEA and disordered eating.
  
  
  METHODS
  Women diagnosed with a bulimic disorder (n = 176) and normal-eater women (n = 139) were assessed for childhood traumata, eating-disorder (ED) symptoms and psychopathological characteristics (ineffectiveness, perfectionism, depression, and affective instability) thought to be potential mediators of interest.
  
  
  RESULTS
  CEA was more prevalent in the bulimic than in the nonbulimic group, and predicted severity of some eating-symptom indices. Ineffectiveness and affective instability both mediated relationships between CEA and selected ED symptoms.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We found CEA to predict eating pathology through mediating effects of ineffectiveness and affective instability. CEA might influence severity of ED symptoms by impacting an individual's self-esteem and capacity for affect regulation.
authors.affiliation: Eating Disorders Program, Douglas University Institute, Montreal, Quebec, Canada. patricia.groleau@mail.mcgill.ca
authors.forename: Patricia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Groleau
authors.forename: Howard
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Steiger
authors.forename: Kenneth
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bruce
authors.forename: Mimi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Israel
authors.forename: Lindsay
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Sycz
authors.forename: Anne-Sophie
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Ouellette
authors.forename: Ghislaine
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Badawi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D054523:Adult Survivors of Child Abuse / Q000523:psychology*; D052018:Bulimia Nervosa / Q000523:psychology*; D003863:Depression / Q000523:psychology; D004644:Emotions; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D010551:Personality; D012649:Self Concept; D014754:Violence