Sociocultural Factors that Lead to Eating Disorders in Young Women

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Sociocultural Factors that Lead to Eating Disorders in Young Women According to the DSM-5, anorexia nervosa is characterized by “distorted body image and excessive dieting that leads to severe weight loss with a pathological fear of becoming fat” while bulimia nervosa is characterized by “frequent episodes of binge eating followed by inappropriate behaviors such as self-induced vomiting to avoid weight gain” (DSM-5, American Psychiatric Association, 2013). These two disorders most often affect adolescent girls and young women. There are many factors that can cause body dysmorphia such as behavioral, genetic, and sociocultural. These factors can ultimately onset eating disorders. According to a study by Emily A. Young, James R. Clopton, and M. Kathryn Bleckley at Texas Tech University claim factors associated to these eating disorders include “social pressure from family, peers, and the media and individual variables, such as self-esteem, perfectionism, body dissatisfaction, and depression” (Young, Clopton, Bleckley, 2004). The purpose of the study mentioned above is to assess the individual variables to see if they are positively correlated with bulimia nervosa. The participants used in this study were 193 female undergraduate students at Texas Tech University. These students were also enrolled in an introductory psychology class. They used a variety of questionnaires used to assess feelings about negativity towards body shape; binge eating and compensatory behaviors; depressed mood, sleep patterns, feelings of guilt and hopelessness; influences from peers and/or the media; positive feelings about themselves; and questions regarding perfectionism. A weight ratio (reported weight divided by the standard weight to height rati... ... middle of paper ... ...kel, P. (1980). Socio-cultural factors in the development of anorexia nervosa.Psychological Medicine, (10), 647-656. Retrieved from http://eat-26.com/Docs/Garner-Sociocultural-Factors-1980.pdf Petersen, J. L., & Hyde, J. S. (2013). Peer sexual harassment and disordered eating in early adolescence. Developmental Psychology, 49(1), 184-195. doi:10.1037/a0028247 McKnight. (2003). Risk factors for the onset of eating disorders in adolescent girls: Results of the McKnight longitudinal risk factor study. The American Journal of Psychiatry, (160), 248-254. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12562570 Young, E., Clopton, J., & Bleckley, K. (2004). Perfectionism, low self-esteem, and family factors as predictors of bulimic behaviors. Science Direct, 5, 273-283. Retrieved from http://www.depts.ttu.edu/psy/people/jclopton/YoungCloptonBleckley2004.pdf

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