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Defense styles and parental bonding in eating‐disordered women
Author(s) -
Steiger Howard,
Feen Julie Van Der,
Goldstein Cathy,
Leichner Pierre
Publication year - 1989
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 - 10.1002/1098-108x(198903)8:2<131::aid-eat2260080202>3.0.co;2-k
Subject(s) - anorexia nervosa , psychology , eating disorders , psychodynamics , empathy , object relations theory , developmental psychology , bulimia nervosa , style (visual arts) , anorexia , clinical psychology , psychiatry , psychotherapist , psychoanalytic theory , medicine , history , archaeology
Fifty‐eight women with anorexia or bulimia nervosa were compared with 24 normal women on measures of defense style and parental bonding. Results indicated that all eating‐disorder subtypes exhibit more primitive defenses and fewer mature ones than controls. Eating‐disorder patients uniformly recalled less paternal empathy than controls. Thus, difficulties involving object representations of fathers may be a theme common to eating disorders. No major differences were identified among eating‐disorder subtypes, suggesting that these disorders share substantial psychodynamic features. Patterns of parental bonding were associated with defense styles in a manner consistent with theories that link defense style development to early object relationships.