title: Social anhedonia and work and social functioning in the acute and recovered phases of eating disorders.
abstract: Interpersonal difficulties are proposed to maintain eating disorders (EDs). This study explored whether social anhedonia (SA) was an additional social emotional maintenance factor which might also explain work/social problems in EDs. Additionally, the study explored SA and work and social adjustment in recovered participants. Women with anorexia nervosa (AN; n=105), bulimia nervosa (BN; n=46), recovered from AN (RAN; n=30) and non-ED controls (n=136) completed the Work and Social Adjustment Scale (WSAS) and the Revised Social Anhedonia Scale. ED participants reported greater SA and WSAS scores than non-ED controls; the RAN group reported an intermediate profile. AN participants had poorer work/social adjustment than BN participants. SA was associated with longer illness duration. SA, current severity (BMI) and lifetime severity (lowest adult BMI) significantly predicted work/social difficulties. Recovered participants scoring in the clinical range for SA experienced significantly greater work/social difficulties than recovered participants scoring outside the clinical range for SA. EDs are associated with clinical levels of SA and poor work/social functioning which reduce in recovery. SA may maintain the interpersonal functioning difficulties.
authors.affiliation: King׳s College London, Institute of Psychiatry, Addiction Sciences Building, 4 Windsor Walk, London SE5 8AF, UK; Eating Disorders Service, Maudsley Hospital, South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, Denmark Hill, London SE5 8AZ, UK. Electronic address: amy.harrison@kcl.ac.uk.
authors.forename: Amy
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Harrison
authors.affiliation: Eating Disorders Service, Maudsley Hospital, South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, Denmark Hill, London SE5 8AZ, UK.
authors.forename: Victoria A
authors.initials: VA
authors.lastname: Mountford
authors.affiliation: Eating Disorders Service, Maudsley Hospital, South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, Denmark Hill, London SE5 8AZ, UK; King׳s College London, Institute of Psychiatry, PO59, De Crespigny Park, London SE5 8AF, London, UK; Clinical Psychology, Illia State University, Kakutsa Cholokashvili Avenue 3/5, Tbilisi 0162, Georgia.
authors.forename: Kate
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Tchanturia
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D059445:Anhedonia; D004644:Emotions; D001068:Feeding and Eating Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D012917:Social Adjustment; D012919:Social Behavior; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014937:Work / Q000523:psychology*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Anhedonia; Anorexia nervosa; Bulimia nervosa; Recovery; Social functioning; Work