Cognitive Correlates of Reported Sexual Abuse in Eating- Disordered Women

• NCJ Number: 155630
• Journal: Journal of Interpersonal Violence Volume: 10 Issue: 2 Dated: (June 1995) Pages: 176-187
• Author(s): G Waller; A Ruddock; S Cureton
• Date Published: 1995
• Length: 12 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study investigated cognitive processes in eating- disordered women who reported a history of sexual abuse and examined the interrelationships between those processes to determine whether they reflect similar cognitive constructs.

Abstract

Subjects were 50 women who met authoritative diagnostic criteria for anorexia nervosa (20 women) or bulimia nervosa (30 women). Of the 50 eating-disordered women, 34 reported some form of unwanted sexual experience. Two possible cognitive consequences of sexual abuse were examined. First, Jehu's (1988) Belief Inventory was used; this is a self-report questionnaire that allows respondents to describe how strongly they hold each of 26 self-denigratory beliefs about the causes and consequences of unwanted sexual experiences. Second, an adaptation of the Stroop task (1935) was used; the Stroop task is a commonly used psychological paradigm used in both clinical and experimental settings. Findings show that eating-disordered women who reported sexual abuse had a distinctive cognitive style. They had a general attentional bias toward information that is relevant to such abuse, and that attentional bias was associated with specific self-denigratory beliefs as a result of the abuse, even though the women's Belief Inventory scores were lower than those reported by women referred as a direct result of sexual abuse. The attentional bias was linked to two of the categories of victims' beliefs. First, it was associated with all three items that reflect a belief that one has been "contaminated" by their experience. Second, there were correlations with three of the seven items that composed the construct of poor general and sexual self-esteem. In contrast, there were no correlations with any of the beliefs about the offender's motivation, self-blame for the specific abusive experience, or perceived threat from other people and relationships. Neither of these two measures can confirm the accuracy of reports of abuse. 2 tables and 36 references