Disordered Eating among College Students: The Effects of Parental Attachment and the Mediating Role of Emotion Dysregulation

Objectives: The current study explored the relationship between parental attachment and disordered eating among college students. This study also explored the potential mediating role of factors associated with emotion regulation. Participants: One hundred sixty-seven undergraduates (M = 18.93 years, SD = 1.02) participated in the current study. Methods: Participants completed an anonymous questionnaire reporting their perceptions of their parental attachment relationships, emotional reactivity, difficulty regulating emotions, and disordered eating. Results: Analyses using structural equation modeling indicated that difficulty regulating emotions mediated the relationship between maternal attachment and disordered eating, but not between paternal attachment and disordered eating. Emotional reactivity did not emerge as a significant mediator. Conclusions: These findings suggest that maternal attachment relationships may be associated with difficulty regulating emotions in adulthood, which may in turn impact disordered eating attitudes and behaviors.