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This experimental study demonstrates the usefulness of multi-group piece-wise latent growth curve models (LGCM) in clinical research, particularly for assessing and comparing treatment effects. Sixty-two female patients (M age = 28.1; SD = 8.00) with bulimia nervosa were randomly assigned to a) a guided self-change treatment (GSC) involving a self-care manual plus 8 bi-weekly sessions of cognitive behavioral therapy or b) 16 weekly sessions of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). Both groups showed significant improvements in treatment outcomes during treatment, although CBT showed greater improvements. However, GSC evidenced more continued improvement post-treatment. Both programs showed variability in effectiveness during the treatment period on at least one outcome, while GSC showed greater variability than CBT during follow-up on two outcomes. Baseline levels on treatment outcomes were related to follow-up improvement levels, particularly for GCS. LGCM provided a rich analysis of these data, and addressed important questions regarding differences in the effectiveness of the two treatment programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To determine whether the Anorectic Behavior Observation Scale (ABOS) originally developed for clinical purposes can be used in epidemiological studies to assess parents' rating of their child's eating behavior., Method: In a study of 1,057 children aged 10-17 years, the children completed the Eating Disorder Inventory, Child Version (EDI-C), while the parents of 922 children completed the ABOS. The ABOS consists of 30 items, divided into three subscales--unusual eating behaviors, bulimia-like behaviors, and hyperactivity., Results: The data revealed a number of psychometric problems of the ABOS, including variance restriction and extreme distributions. This is due to the checklist design of the ABOS, which generates few "yes" responses in nonclinical populations. Using principal components analysis and confirmatory factor analysis, 10 items were selected that had better psychometric characteristics than the 30-item ABOS while maintaining the same level of validity. This resulted in three subscales similar to the original ones, with 4, 2, and 4 items--eating behavior, bulimia-like behavior, and level of activity/fitness., Conclusions: The short form of the ABOS, called Eating and Activity Questionnaire for Parents (EAQP), is a parsimonious instrument for screening parents' assessments of their child's eating behavior.

Objective: To study in children and adolescents associations between body mass index and psychosocial problems including those typical for eating disorders., Method: 1057 pupils aged 10 to 17 years completed the Youth Self-Report (YSR) and the Eating Disorder Inventory for children (EDI-C). Socio-demographic data and information about height and weight were also gathered., Results: Underweight girls reported fewer problems than those with normal weight. Overweight girls had higher scores than normal weight girls on six out of eleven EDI-C-scales (drive for thinness, bulimia, body dissatisfaction, ineffectiveness, interpersonal distrust, interoceptive awareness) as well as on the YSR-scales Anxious/depressed and Social problems. Similarly, overweight boys presented more social problems then those of normal weight and higher scores on the same EDI-C-scales as overweight girls with the exception of interpersonal distrust. Underweight boys differed from normal weight boys on the YSR in reporting more somatic complaints, but on none of the EDI-C scales., Conclusions: Overweight children and adolescents seem to suffer from psychosocial problems including those typical for eating disorders. Therefore, they require intervention not only for the prevention of medical consequences of overweight and obesity. In the treatment of overweight children and adolescents eating disorder symptoms need to be taken into account.