Abstract
This article presents the 2-year findings of a prospective investigation of the precursors to the later development of an eating disorder in adolescents. The sample consisted of 852 girls and 815 boys who began the study in Grades 7-10 and participated for 3 consecutive years. For both genders, the strongest predictors of Year 3 risk status were Years 1 and 2 risk scores. When the effects of Year 1 and Year 2 risk were controlled, race (Caucasian) and poor interoceptive awareness at Year 2 were significant predictors of disordered eating at Year 3 for girls. Previous risk status was the only significant predictor of Year 3 risk for boys. Gender difference evaluations in the risk score components indicated that a significantly greater proportion of girls than boys endorsed behaviors that were similar to eating disorder diagnostic criteria. Poor interoceptive awareness may provide a vulnerability for eating disorders; possible pathways were discussed.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 140-149 |
Number of pages | 10 |
Journal | Journal of abnormal psychology |
Volume | 104 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Feb 1995 |