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Assessing the relevance of the hopelessness theory of depression to women with disordered eating
Author(s) -
Mansfield Jodi L.,
Wade Tracey
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
international journal of eating disorders
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.785
H-Index - 138
eISSN - 1098-108X
pISSN - 0276-3478
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1098-108x(200007)28:1<113::aid-eat14>3.0.co;2-k
Subject(s) - psychology , dysfunctional family , attribution , eating disorders , depression (economics) , clinical psychology , beck depression inventory , psychological intervention , psychiatry , developmental psychology , anxiety , social psychology , economics , macroeconomics
Objective The aim of this study was to investigate the relevance of the hopelessness theory of depression to women with partial‐syndrome eating disorders. Method Three groups of women, one meeting criteria for eating disorders not otherwise specified (EDNOS), one with major depression, and a control group, completed the Balanced Attributional Style Questionnaire, the Eating Disorders Examination Questionnaire, and the Beck Depression Inventory. Results Once levels of depression were controlled, all three groups differed significantly with respect to their attributional style for bad events, with the depressed group showing the greatest tendency to attribute the causes of negative life events to internal factors. However, with respect to the attributional style for good events, the depressed and control group displayed similar styles of attribution, whereas the EDNOS group showed a significantly more dysfunctional style, being more likely to attribute positive events to external factors. Discussion These findings are discussed in terms of their implications for specific therapeutic interventions with disordered eating. © 2000 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Int J Eat Disord 28: 113–119, 2000.