title: Acculturation, out-group positivity and eating disorders symptoms among Emirati women.
abstract: Western acculturation has been implicated in the development of eating disorders among populations living outside Europe and North America. This study explored the relationship between Western acculturation, in-group/out-group evaluations and eating disorders symptoms among female citizens of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Emirati college women (N = 209) completed an affective priming task, designed to implicitly assess in-group (Emirati) and out-group (American) evaluations. Participants also completed the Westernization Survey, a widely used self-report measure of acculturation, and the Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-26). Across the whole sample, out-group positivity was correlated with higher levels of eating disorder symptoms. Participants classified as at risk for eating disorders showed a clear out-group preference (out-group positivity greater than in-group positivity). Western acculturation was also positively correlated with eating disorder symptoms. Overall, these findings lend further support to the acculturation hypothesis of eating disorders in the context of Emirati college women.
authors.affiliation: Department of Natural Science and Public Health, Zayed University, 144534, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Justin.thomas@zu.ac.ae.
authors.forename: Justin
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Thomas
authors.affiliation: Emirates College for Advanced Education, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
authors.forename: Lily
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: O'Hara
authors.affiliation: University of Bristol, Bristol, UK.
authors.forename: Susanne
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Quadflieg
authors.affiliation: New York University, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
authors.forename: Sophia Christin
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Weissgerber
mesh_terms: D000069:Acculturation; D000328:Adult; D001068:Feeding and Eating Disorders / Q000208:ethnology*; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D012307:Risk Factors; D012933:Social Identification; D014479:United Arab Emirates; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Acculturation; Affective prime; Arab; Eating disorders; Identity