NCJ Number
219899
Journal
Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma Volume: 14 Issue: 3 Dated: 2007 Pages: 51-72
Date Published
2007
Length
22 pages
Annotation
Using self-report questionnaires, symptoms of eating disorders were examined in relation to child sexual abuse, child physical abuse, child emotional abuse, and adult rape among college women.
Abstract
Child physical abuse (CPA) and adult rape were associated with fear of fatness and bulimic behavior. Child emotional abuse (CEA), family cohesion and expressiveness, and adult rape were related to difficulties recognizing emotional states and satiety (state of overindulgence). Individuals who reported multiple forms of child abuse or who were victimized exhibited the highest levels of symptoms. Revictimized women were more likely to report clinical levels of symptoms compared with individuals reporting adult rape without child abuse or child abuse without adult rape. These findings support the assumption that negative experiences in addition to child sexual abuse (CSA), such as adult rape and other forms of child abuse, influence eating pathology and suggest a cumulative impact of abuse. Eating disorders (ED) have been associated with social, cultural, developmental, psychological, and physiological factors. This study examined several factors which may impact symptoms of ED, including individual and multiple forms of child abuse, adult sexual victimization, perceived childhood family environment, and the cumulative impact of interpersonal violence. Several clusters of symptoms were examined, including drive for thinness and/or fear of fatness, the tendency to engage in binge-eating and purging behavior, and difficulties distinguishing emotions and sensations of hunger or satiety. The study was part of a larger ongoing prospective study examining risk factors for sexual victimization among college women. Tables, references