Associations between emotion regulation difficulties, eating disorder symptoms, non-suicidal self-injury, and suicide attempts in a heterogeneous eating disorder sample

Compr Psychiatry. 2017 Feb:73:143-150. doi: 10.1016/j.comppsych.2016.11.012. Epub 2016 Nov 30.

Abstract

Background: This study examined the associations between specific dimensions of emotion dysregulation and eating disorder (ED) symptoms and behaviors, non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI), and suicide attempts in a heterogeneous ED sample.

Methods: Participants (N=110) completed the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS), the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire (EDE-Q), and self-reported the presence of lifetime NSSI and a lifetime suicide attempt.

Results: The EDE-Q global score, a primarily cognitive measure of ED symptoms, was significantly positively correlated with DERS strategies, clarity, and awareness subscale scores and DERS total score (ps<0.01). Only the strategies subscale was uniquely positively associated with EDE-Q global score in a multivariate regression analysis. There was no association between the frequency of binge eating or frequency of driven exercise and any of the DERS subscale scores or total score (ps>0.01). Frequency of purging was significantly, positively associated with DERS impulse subscale score and total score (p<0.01). None of the DERS subscale scores were significantly different between those with and without NSSI or between those with and without a lifetime suicide attempt (ps>0.01).

Conclusions: Findings indicate that in a heterogeneous ED sample, emotion regulation deficits are more strongly associated with cognitively-oriented symptoms of EDs than behavioral symptoms such as a binge eating, purging, driven exercise, NSSI, or suicide attempts.

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Bulimia
  • Emotions*
  • Exercise / psychology
  • Feeding and Eating Disorders / diagnosis*
  • Feeding and Eating Disorders / psychology*
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Self Report
  • Self-Injurious Behavior / psychology*
  • Suicide, Attempted*
  • Young Adult