Eating Disorders, Perfectionism, and Quality of Life

2020/09/17 by Emily L. Rutter-Eley, Emily Rutter-Eley, Megan James +2 · 17 citations
Psychology · #Anxiety #Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes #Clinical psychology #Depression (economics) #Disordered eating #Eating Disorders and Behaviors #Eating disorders #Perfectionism (psychology) #Perfectionism, Procrastination, Anxiety Studies #Psychiatry #Psychology #Psychotherapist #Quality of life (healthcare)

paper · doi:10.1097/nmd.0000000000001241

published in The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease 208(10), 771-776 (Lippincott Williams & Wilkins)

openalex created_date 2020/08/18 · openalex publication_date 2020/09/17 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28

Abstract

Individuals with disordered eating behaviors exhibit significantly impaired quality of life (QoL). Maladaptive perfectionism is consistently associated with both eating disorders (EDs) and QoL, but its role in the relationship between eating pathology and QoL has remained largely unexplored. The current study investigated whether maladaptive perfectionism mediates the ED-QoL relationship. A total of 286 university students completed an online survey that consisted of self-report questionnaires assessing ED symptomology, QoL, maladaptive perfectionism, and anxiety and depression symptoms. Maladaptive perfectionism mediated the relationship between ED symptomology and QoL, but this effect did not persist when body mass index, depression, and anxiety were controlled for. The results suggest the mediatory effect of maladaptive perfectionism is masked by depression and anxiety symptomology. Recommendations for further research are proposed to clarify the role of maladaptive perfectionism in the ED-QoL relationship and to explore the mediatory role of depression and anxiety in this relationship.

Citations

• Testing Mediational Models With Longitudinal Data: Questions and Tips in the Use of Structural Equation Modeling.
• A Brief Measure for Assessing Generalized Anxiety Disorder
• Personality in men with eating disorders
• Regression-based statistical mediation and moderation analysis in clinical research: Observations, recommendations, and implementation

Cited by

• Perfectionism, self-compassion, intuitive eating and health-related quality of life in kidney transplant recipients
• Mediating Mechanisms of Perfectionism: Clinical Comorbidity of OCD and ED. [europepmc]
• Co-occurring psychotic and eating disorders in England: findings from the 2014 Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey. [europepmc]
• Identifying overcontrol and undercontrol personality types among young people using the five factor model, and the relationship with disordered eating behaviour, anxiety and depression. [europepmc]
• Physical Activity and Psychonutritional Correlates of Eating Disorder Risk in Female Health Science Students. [europepmc]

Related

• Self‐oriented perfectionism in eating disorders
• Moderators of the body dissatisfaction-eating disorder symptomatology relationship: Replication and extension.
• Psychological need frustration as a transdiagnostic process in associations of self‐critical perfectionism with depressive symptoms and eating pathology
• The Relationship Between Perfectionism and Psychopathology: A Meta‐Analysis
• Classifying eating disorders based on “healthy” and “unhealthy” perfectionism and impulsivity