Eating disorders, disordered eating, and body image research in New Zealand: a scoping review.

Background: The prevention and treatment of eating disorders relies on an extensive body of research that includes various foci and methodologies. This scoping review identified relevant studies of eating disorders, body image, and disordered eating with New Zealand samples; charted the methodologies, sample characteristics, and findings reported; and identified several gaps that should be addressed by further research. Methods: Using scoping review methodology, two databases were searched for studies examining eating disorders, disordered eating, or body image with New Zealand samples. Snowball methods were further used to identify additional relevant articles that did not appear in initial searches. Two independent reviewers screened the titles and abstracts of 473 records. Full text assessment of the remaining 251 records resulted in 148 peer-reviewed articles being identified as eligible for the final review. A search of institutional databases yielded 106 Masters and Doctoral theses for assessment, with a total of 47 theses being identified as eligible for the final review. The included studies were classified by methodology, and the extracted information included the study foci, data collected, sample size, demographic information, and key findings. Results: The eligible studies examined a variety of eating disorder categories including binge-eating disorder, bulimia nervosa, and anorexia nervosa, in addition to disordered eating behaviours and body image in nonclinical or community samples. Methodologies included treatment trials, secondary analysis of existing datasets, non-treatment experimental interventions, cross-sectional observation, case-control studies, qualitative and mixed-methods studies, and case studies or series. Across all of the studies, questionnaire and interview data were most commonly utilised. A wide range of sample sizes were evident, and studies often reported all-female or mostly-female participants, with minimal inclusion of males and gender minorities. There was also an underrepresentation of minority ethnicities in many studies, highlighting the need for future research to increase diversity within samples. Conclusion: This study provides a comprehensive and detailed overview of research into eating disorders and body image in New Zealand, while highlighting important considerations for both local and international research. Plain English summary: Research into eating disorders should include different methods, and should be relevant to people of different ages, gender identities, and ethnicities. We completed a scoping review of research into eating disorders, disordered eating, and body image in New Zealand samples. We searched academic databases for relevant articles, and then screened the articles for eligibility. We then hand-searched key articles, and searched databases again using the names of key authors. A total of 148 peer reviewed articles and 47 theses were eligible for the review, and from these we extracted data on the study method, sample characteristics, and the focus and results. A wide range of methods and sample sizes were reported, and the studies explored several different eating disorders, as well as disordered eating and body image in nonclinical samples. However, the studies often involved all or mostly female samples, few to no gender minority participants, and an underrepresentation of minority ethnicities. Funders should provide adequate time and financial resources to fund recruitment from historically under-represented groups, emphasising their involvement as active researchers. In addition, funders should consider financing the use of novel or underutilised methods to advance knowledge in this field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]