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Effect of response format on endorsement of eating disordered attitudes and behaviors
Author(s) -
Anderson Drew A.,
Simmons Angela M.,
Milnes Suzanne M.,
Earleywine Mitchell
Publication year - 2007
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/eat.20342
Subject(s) - dieting , psychology , affect (linguistics) , anonymity , disordered eating , response bias , social psychology , clinical psychology , eating disorders , developmental psychology , obesity , medicine , weight loss , communication , computer security , computer science
Objective: The present study was designed to compare response rates on a standard self‐report questionnaire that was nominally anonymous to an unmatched count questionnaire that allowed for true anonymity in responding. Method: Four hundred and fifty‐four college students were asked about several topics, including attitudes towards weight and shape, dieting, and eating disordered behavior using one of two response formats; either a standard questionnaire in true‐false format or an unmatched count questionnaire that did not require participants to directly answer sensitive questions. Results: Both males and females had significantly different rates of endorsement between the two methods of assessment on the majority of the eating‐related questions. Conclusion: Response format and degree of anonymity affect endorsement of eating‐related thoughts and behaviors. Understanding response bias is critical to determining accurate rates of eating disordered thoughts and behaviors. © 2006 by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Eat Disord 2006