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Objective: We sought to estimate prevalences of childhood emotional abuse (CEA) in bulimic and normal-eater control groups, and to replicate previous findings linking CEA to severity of eating symptoms in BN. We also examined potential mediators of the link between CEA and disordered eating., Method: Women diagnosed with a bulimic disorder (n = 176) and normal-eater women (n = 139) were assessed for childhood traumata, eating-disorder (ED) symptoms and psychopathological characteristics (ineffectiveness, perfectionism, depression, and affective instability) thought to be potential mediators of interest., Results: CEA was more prevalent in the bulimic than in the nonbulimic group, and predicted severity of some eating-symptom indices. Ineffectiveness and affective instability both mediated relationships between CEA and selected ED symptoms., Discussion: We found CEA to predict eating pathology through mediating effects of ineffectiveness and affective instability. CEA might influence severity of ED symptoms by impacting an individual's self-esteem and capacity for affect regulation., (Copyright © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Objective: In participants with eating disorders (EDs), prior physical or sexual abuse has been associated with increased likelihood of impulsivity and affective instability. However, previous studies among participants with eating disorders have not systematically explored relationships between empirically derived, personality-trait-based classes, on the one hand, and likelihood of exposure to either childhood sexual or physical abuse, on the other., Method: We assessed multiple psychopathological traits, eating symptoms, and history of abuse in 185 women with an ED and 93 with no ED., Results: A latent class analysis, conducted using psychopathological-trait measures, yielded latent classes of participants with eating disorders fitting the descriptors "dissocial/impulsive," "inhibited/compulsive," and "low psychopathology." ED was generally associated with increased risk of childhood sexual abuse, but the dissocial/impulsive characteristic corresponded with a unique likelihood of physical abuse and especially high rates of sexual abuse., Discussion: Observed associations between different forms of childhood abuse and trait-defined ED variants help inform models on the development of eating disorders and of psychopathological traits that often accompany them., (2009 by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Objective: To investigate behavior-outcome expectancies relating to thinness, dietary restriction, eating, and alcohol consumption in women with bulimia nervosa (BN)., Method: Women with BN (N = 29), women with BN and a co-morbid lifetime alcohol use disorder (AUD; N = 18), and control women (N = 24), completed interviews and questionnaires assessing eating- and alcohol-related symptoms, as well as questionnaires measuring expectancies relating to thinness, dietary restriction, eating, and alcohol consumption., Results: Compared with the control group, both bulimic groups reported greater positive expectancies relating to thinness, dietary restriction and eating; expectancy endorsements were also predictive of the severity of eating-related symptoms. Compared with the other groups, the bulimic group with comorbid lifetime AUD had elevated positive alcohol-related expectancies, and alcohol expectancy endorsements predicted severity of alcohol-related symptoms., Discussion: Women with BN endorsed more positive expectancies relating to thinness, dietary restriction, and eating, whereas women with BN and a lifetime comorbid AUD endorsed more positive alcohol expectancies. The results are consistent with expectancy theory in that positive expectancy endorsements were associated with symptom severity in a syndrome-specific manner. Expectancies related to thinness, dietary restriction, eating, and alcohol consumption in women with BN., ((c) 2008 by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Background: A short (s) allele in the promoter region of the 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) transporter gene (5HTTLPR) has been associated with low transcription of the 5-HT transporter protein, and with clinical manifestations including impulsivity, affective disorder, and bulimia nervosa., Methods: We studied implications of the 5HTTLPR s allele for eating symptoms, psychopathologic traits, and platelet [3H-] paroxetine binding in 59 women with bulimia spectrum syndromes., Results: Compared with those without it, carriers of the s allele of 5HTTLPR showed significantly more affective instability, behavioral impulsivity, interpersonal insecurity, comorbid borderline personality disorder (BPD), and lower density (Bmax) of paroxetine-binding sites., Conclusions: Our results suggest that proneness to impulsivity, affective dysregulation, and reduced central 5-HT reuptake may (in part) be codetermined by the 5HTTLPR polymorphism. However, given inconsistent 5HTTLPR expression in different populations, we speculate that we may be observing a phenotype (i.e., eating disorder)-dependent manifestation., (2004 by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Objective: Various reports suggest that purging with laxatives is associated with greater behavioral impulsivity in bulimia nervosa (BN) patients. We investigated the extent to which laxative misuse corresponds to specific impulse-control problems., Method: Participants included bulimic women who misuse laxatives (BNL+; n = 12), bulimic women who do not misuse laxatives (BNL-; n = 33), and healthy normal eaters (NE; n = 26). Participants completed the Go/No-Go discrimination task (a well-validated computerized measure of response disinhibition), as well as self-report questionnaires of impulsivity, eating symptoms, and general psychopathology., Results: Compared with the other groups, the BNL+ group made more commission errors on the Go/No-Go under cues for punishment, indicating they were more disinhibited when faced with possible negative outcomes. Compared with the BNL- group, the BNL+ group was also more likely to differ from the NE group on self-reported impulsivity. There were no differences between the two bulimic groups on eating symptoms and the three groups did not differ in terms of general psychopathology., Discussion: Findings suggest that, controlling for eating symptoms and psychopathology, laxative misuse among BN patients is associated with difficulty inhibiting incorrect responses in the face of perceived threats., (Copyright 2002 by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)