Is Self-Esteem the Primary Predictor of Disordered Eating?

Maureen E. Shea, Mary Pritchard

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

71 Scopus citations

Abstract

This study examined whether self-esteem is the primary predictor of disordered eating. A survey measured levels of self-esteem and a variety of other health behaviors in 196 male and 263 female undergraduate students. We conducted stepwise regressions to determine which of several variables (self-esteem, high stress, poor coping skills, maladaptive perfectionism, gender) best predicted disordered eating. The results indicated that self-esteem was the secondary predictor for bulimia, drive for thinness, and body dissatisfaction. Future research should further investigate how self-esteem interacts with other predictor variables to better determine the relationship between self-esteem and disordered eating.

Original languageAmerican English
Pages (from-to)1527-1537
Number of pages11
JournalPersonality and Individual Differences
Volume42
Issue number8
DOIs
StatePublished - Jun 2007

Keywords

  • Coping
  • Disordered eating
  • Gender
  • Self-esteem

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