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Perfectionism, social exclusion, and anorexia nervosa symptoms McGee, Brandy Jennifer
Abstract
Anorexia nervosa affects between 0.5% and 1% of the population and kills young women at a rate 10 times higher than the normal population (DSM-IV-TR; American Psychiatric Association, 2003; Hoek, 2006). Perfectionism has long been recognized as a risk factor for the disorder, but that relationship is not well understood. We conducted a longitudinal experimental study to examine the effect of multidimensional perfectionism on state symptoms of anorexia nervosa under conditions of social acceptance, social exclusion, and a control condition. In addition to testing a diathesis-stress model of anorectic symptoms, we also explored whether rejected affect mediated that relationship. The concurrent results indicated that both trait perfectionism and perfectionistic self-presentation were predictive of affective, cognitive, and self-evaluative symptoms of anorexia. However, only perfectionistic self-promotion and nondisplay of imperfection predicted concurrent symptoms beyond the variance accounted for by the Big Five personality traits. The longitudinal findings suggested that perfectionistic self-presentation predicted a worsening of cognitive and self-evaluative anorectic symptoms over time. By itself, neither trait perfectionism, nor perfectionistic self-presentation was predictive of concurrent eating behavior or change in eating behavior over time. Tests of the diathesis-stress model indicated that both trait perfectionism and perfectionistic self-presentation interacted with level of belongingness to predict change in state symptoms of anorexia nervosa. However, the different dimensions of perfectionism were predictive o f different aspects of the anorectic experience. For example, socially prescribed perfectionism interacted with social feedback condition to predict increasing dietary restriction, whereas self-oriented perfectionism interacted with social feedback condition to predict change in state self-esteem, and perfectionistic self-promotion interacted with level of belongingness to predict a worsening of anorectic thoughts. Moreover, with one exception, social acceptance had a negative effect for highly perfectionistic individuals. Tests of the mediated moderation model revealed that rejected affect mediates the relationship between perfectionistic self-promotion and anorectic thoughts about rigid weight regulation in the context of social exclusion. The results are discussed with respect to existing models of anorectic symptom development and implications for treatment and future research.
Item Metadata
Title |
Perfectionism, social exclusion, and anorexia nervosa symptoms
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Creator | |
Publisher |
University of British Columbia
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Date Issued |
2007
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Description |
Anorexia nervosa affects between 0.5% and 1% of the population and kills young women at a
rate 10 times higher than the normal population (DSM-IV-TR; American Psychiatric
Association, 2003; Hoek, 2006). Perfectionism has long been recognized as a risk factor for the
disorder, but that relationship is not well understood. We conducted a longitudinal experimental
study to examine the effect of multidimensional perfectionism on state symptoms of anorexia
nervosa under conditions of social acceptance, social exclusion, and a control condition. In
addition to testing a diathesis-stress model of anorectic symptoms, we also explored whether
rejected affect mediated that relationship. The concurrent results indicated that both trait
perfectionism and perfectionistic self-presentation were predictive of affective, cognitive, and
self-evaluative symptoms of anorexia. However, only perfectionistic self-promotion and
nondisplay of imperfection predicted concurrent symptoms beyond the variance accounted for by
the Big Five personality traits. The longitudinal findings suggested that perfectionistic self-presentation
predicted a worsening of cognitive and self-evaluative anorectic symptoms over
time. By itself, neither trait perfectionism, nor perfectionistic self-presentation was predictive of
concurrent eating behavior or change in eating behavior over time. Tests of the diathesis-stress
model indicated that both trait perfectionism and perfectionistic self-presentation interacted with
level of belongingness to predict change in state symptoms of anorexia nervosa. However, the
different dimensions of perfectionism were predictive o f different aspects of the anorectic
experience. For example, socially prescribed perfectionism interacted with social feedback
condition to predict increasing dietary restriction, whereas self-oriented perfectionism interacted
with social feedback condition to predict change in state self-esteem, and perfectionistic self-promotion
interacted with level of belongingness to predict a worsening of anorectic thoughts. Moreover, with one exception, social acceptance had a negative effect for highly perfectionistic
individuals. Tests of the mediated moderation model revealed that rejected affect mediates the
relationship between perfectionistic self-promotion and anorectic thoughts about rigid weight
regulation in the context of social exclusion. The results are discussed with respect to existing
models of anorectic symptom development and implications for treatment and future research.
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Genre | |
Type | |
Language |
eng
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Date Available |
2011-01-28
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Provider |
Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
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Rights |
For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use.
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DOI |
10.14288/1.0100538
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URI | |
Degree | |
Program | |
Affiliation | |
Degree Grantor |
University of British Columbia
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Campus | |
Scholarly Level |
Graduate
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Aggregated Source Repository |
DSpace
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Item Media
Item Citations and Data
Rights
For non-commercial purposes only, such as research, private study and education. Additional conditions apply, see Terms of Use https://open.library.ubc.ca/terms_of_use.