Psychological Explanations For Anorexia Flashcards
(SLT) Describe how modelling and reinforcement is an explanation of AN.
A girl sees her mother dieting (modelling) and sees her mothers friend tell her she looks good (VR) so the girl diets (imitation) and if someone says she looks good and praises her (direct reinforcement) she carries on eating less.
(SLT) explain how the media is an explanation of AN.
Person observed role model in media (same gender/higher status) - they’re modelling dieting or looking underweight - mediational processes occur - VR when the person gets fame, a glamorous lifestyle, regarded as beautiful and money from it - person imitates by restricting food - direct reinforcement through pos attention
Evaluate SLT as an explanation for AN.
S - link between regular magazine reading and AN symptoms (explains gender differences). Study found link between dieting and food restraints of mothers and daughters. TV introduced to Fiji in mid 1990s - increase in desire to lose weight in adolescent girls and desire to be like media characters, 12% increase in vomiting to lose weight and 16% increase in disordered eating.
C - one study found no link between mothers and daughters eating. Psychodynamic says it’s the nature of mother daughter relationships. Can’t explain all symptoms. Can’t account for media influences varying - magazines>TV.
I - reductionist (no bio)
P - modelling promoting good eating
(COGNITIVE) give an overview of the cognitive explanation for AN.
- thoughts and beliefs become distorted and irrational
- schema interprets information that doesn’t reflect reality that others share
- leads to emotional distress and extreme weight loss
(COGNITIVE) explain distorted thoughts as a cognitive cause of AN.
- disturbed perceptions that are inaccurate about their size, weight, body shape and food
- persistently overestimate weight
- afraid of eating, think they’re overweight when they aren’t
- distortions may arise from comparisons (media/everyday life)
- thinks they are fat and ugly leading to the distorted thought that they must avoid food altogether to lose weight
- critical of body and self worth
(COGNITIVE) explain irrational beliefs as a cognitive cause of AN.
- beliefs are irrational, illogical, unhelpful and inconsistent with reality
- might believe if they’re unable to control weight they’re worthless
- perfectionist thinking
- demanding and highest standards in all aspects - eg not all A*s = fail
- body weight is a focus of perfectionist thinking and individual pursues goal of extreme weight loss and control of food intake relentlessly
- attaining goal doesn’t lead to satisfaction and perfectionist thinker sets a further weight loss goal
- lose weight to point of starvation
- “all or nothing” thinking
- cognitive inflexibility - belief system doesn’t change even if circumstances do eg even if lose weight won’t shift position + accept they no longer need to restrict food.
Evaluate cognitive theory as an explanation for AN.
S - 41 children w AN // 43 healthy. No IQ difference but patients w AN more inflexible and inefficient w cognitive processing. Eg less able to relinquish previous beliefs when shown New info. 37 AN patients less accurate at estimating body size than control. 728 women completed questionnaire showed perfectionist thinking later developed AN.
C - DT+ IT = cause AN or caused by? Contrasting research of estimating body size (no difference) so lacks reliability.
I - FMRI scans AN/ control group showed same areas active when looking at other bodies but less activity in AN group when looking at their own. Distortions exist but only to own bodies - simplified?
P - CBT - 26 patients significantly improved w weight gain and maintained it. Helps lend weight to the idea of distortions causing AN. But - treatment aetiology fallacy.
(FAMILY SYSTEMS) briefly explain FST.
FST is a psychodynamic approach proposing that an individual can’t be understood as an isolated person, but as a part of a wider social structure - their family. It focuses on mother daughter relationships, and considers enmeshment and autonomy and control to the development of AN.
(FAMILY SYSTEMS) what is enmeshment?
Family members overly involved in each other’s lives at the expense of other relationships. Lack of privacy and independence, parents overprotective. Self identity blurred as it is intrinsically bound up with identities of others in family.
(FAMILY SYSTEMS) what is autonomy and control?
Autonomy is the ability to make decisions independently without the influence of others in the family. An enmeshed family doesn’t allow adolescent to make their own choices. Parents become over controlling and don’t let children make age appropriate choices. Mother is domineering over daughter.
(FAMILY SYSTEMS) how does an enmeshed family cause AN?
They don’t let the child exercise any control over their life. Other characteristics involve rigidity and conflict avoidance. Over protective parents prevent adolescent from actin independently. AN is seen as a way of gaining autonomy and control and managing their own life. They take charge by restricting eating and gaining visible control of their body.
(FAMILY SYSTEMS) explain how AN develops from the 4 characteristics of the FST.
Enmeshment = differentiating
Overprotectiveness = control
Rigidity = changing themselves
Conflict avoidance = avoiding underlying hostility
Evaluate FST as an explanation for AN.
S - AN families more enmeshed, overprotective, avoided conflict avoidance and rigid behaviour. However studies gynocentric and difficult to see if this caused AN or was a cause. 112 female patients showed greater desire to be autonomous
C - families of female AN patients no more enmeshed than others. Poor reliability. Could be explained by different operationalisations of concepts like enmeshment. Also rates of AN rising, can’t say enmeshment is
I - gender bias. Studies gynocentric and assumes AN is mothers fault
P - behavioural family systems therapy successful treating AN by working w whole family. 11 patients for 16 months - 6 had recovered and after another year 3 more had.
