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Parental intrusiveness in adolescence recalled by women with a history of bulimia nervosa and comparison women
Author(s) -
Rorty Marcia,
Yager Joel,
Rossotto Elizabeth,
Buckwalter Galen
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 - 10.1002/1098-108x(200009)28:2<202::aid-eat9>3.0.co;2-g
Subject(s) - intrusiveness , psychology , bulimia nervosa , jealousy , developmental psychology , clinical psychology , daughter , eating disorders , social psychology , evolutionary biology , biology
Objective To learn if women with a lifetime history of bulimia nervosa (BN) report more intrusive parental behavior during adolescence than their nonclinical peers, and to provide further validation of the Parental Intrusiveness Rating Scale (PIRS). Method We administered the PIRS to 86 women with a lifetime history of BN and 573 comparison subjects and examined between‐group differences. Results Relative to the comparison group, lifetime BN subjects reported higher levels of parental intrusiveness, specifically maternal invasion of privacy, maternal jealousy and competition, paternal seductiveness, and maternal and paternal overconcern with the daughter's eating, weight, and shape. There were no between‐group differences in paternal invasion of privacy. In exploratory analyses with the comparison sample, Caucasian women reported greater maternal jealousy and competition than Asian American/Pacific Islander women, but there were no other differences. Conclusion These results support clinical observations of high levels of parental intrusiveness in the adolescent experiences of women who develop BN. Nonclinical women of diverse ethnic backgrounds report largely equivalent experiences. © 2000 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Int J Eat Disord 28: 202–208, 2000.