title: Weight-related abuse: Perceived emotional impact and the effect on disordered eating.
abstract: The purpose of this article was to evaluate theories that (1) weight-related abuse (WRA) plays a unique role in the development of disordered eating, above and beyond general childhood verbal abuse and weight-related teasing, and (2) the perceived emotional impact of WRA mediates the relationship between WRA and current disordered eating. Self-report questionnaires on childhood trauma, weight-related teasing, WRA, and current eating behaviors were administered to a total of 383 undergraduate students. In initial regressions, WRA significantly predicted binge eating, emotional eating, night eating, and unhealthy weight control. WRA continued to significantly predict all 4 forms of disordered eating following the introduction of measures of weight-related teasing and childhood verbal abuse into the regression. Latent variable analysis confirmed that perceived emotional impact of WRA mediated the relationship between WRA and disordered eating, and tests for indirect effects yielded a significant indirect effect of WRA on disordered eating through perceived emotional impact. In sum, WRA is a unique construct and the content of childhood or adolescent maltreatment is important in determining eventual psychopathology outcomes. These findings support the necessity of incorporating information on developmental history and cognitive factors into assessment and treatment of individuals with disordered eating.
authors: Department of Psychology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794-2520, USA.
authors: Jessica K
authors: JK
authors: Salwen
authors: Department of Psychology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794-2520, USA; Department of Surgery, Stony Brook Hospital, Stony Brook, NY 11794-2500, USA.
authors: Genna F
authors: GF
authors: Hymowitz
authors: Department of Psychology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794-2520, USA.
authors: Sarah M
authors: SM
authors: Bannon
authors: Department of Psychology, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11794-2520, USA.
authors: K Daniel
authors: KD
authors: O'Leary
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D054523:Adult Survivors of Child Abuse / Q000523:psychology*; D001835:Body Weight; D058445:Bullying; D004644:Emotions; D001068:Feeding and Eating Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009511:New England / Q000453:epidemiology; D012044:Regression Analysis; D013334:Students; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014495:Universities; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Childhood abuse; Cognition; Disorder eating; Obesity; Weight-related abuse; Weight-related teasing