An investigation into the eating psychopathology of staff working with patients with an eating disorder

Willoughby, Kate and Brouwer, Katharine (2018) An investigation into the eating psychopathology of staff working with patients with an eating disorder. British Journal of Mental Health Nursing, 7 (5). (doi:10.12968/bjmh.2018.7.5.225).

Abstract

Background: evidence suggests that social comparison is a predictor of increased body dissatisfaction and body dissatisfaction, in turn, is a predictor of increased eating psychopathology (weight and shape management behaviour). This has been explored in the general population but not in a population of staff working with patients with an eating disorder, who may be particularly vulnerable to the development of eating psychopathology.

Aims: to explore the relationship between social comparison, body dissatisfaction and eating psychopathology in female staff working with patients with an eating disorder.

Method: a cross-sectional questionnaire design was used with 131 clinical staff working with patients with an eating disorder and a comparison group of 131 adult women who do not work with this population.

Findings: findings were surprising and showed a deviation from the norm as staff engaged in significantly lower levels of weight and shape management behaviours compared to the non-staff group.

Conclusion: the use of weight and shape management behaviours are significantly lower in staff working with patients with an eating disorder compared to the typical population, despite having more opportunity for social comparison. Psychological theories are used to offer an explanation for this finding.

This record has no associated files available for download.

Contributors

Download statistics