Psychological Explanations to AN Flashcards
How many psychological explanations of AN are there?
5
Name the 5 psychological explanations of AN
1) Cultural ideals
2) Media influences
3) Ethnicity
4) Peer influences
5) Personality
Outline cultural ideals in terms of psychological explanations of AN
Widely held belief that western standards of attractiveness are an important contributory factors to the development of AN
What study relates to cultural ideals in terms of psychological explanations of AN?
Gregory (00) - National Diet & Nutrition Survey of Young People
Outline Gregory (00)
Found 16% of 15-18year old girls in UK ‘currently on a diet’
Outline media influences in terms of psychological explanations of AN
Major source of influence for body image attitudes maintained by Western adolescents - e.g. portrayal of thin models on TV and magazines significant contributory factor in body image concerns and drive or thinness among Western adolescent girls - but media does not influence everyone in the same way
What study relates to media influences in terms of psychological explanations of AN?
Jones & Buckingham (05)
Outline Jones & Buckingham (05)
Individuals with low self-esteem more likely to compare themselves in idealised images portrayed in media
Outline ethnicity in terms of psychological explanations of AN
Other cultural groups do not place same value on thinness as an ideal for women - incidence of AN in non-western cultures and in black populations in western cultures much lower than within white western population
Name the 2 studies relating to ethnicity in terms of psychological explanations of AN
1) Grabe & Hyde (06)
2) Pollack (95)
Outline Grabe & Hyde (06)
Meta-analysis of 98 studies - found difference between African-American and Caucasian and Hispanic females - African-Americans reported significantly less body dissatisfaction than other 2 groups
Outline Pollack (95)
In many non-western cultures like Fiji and the Caribbean, there are more positive attitudes towards large body sizes, which are associated with attractiveness fertility and nurturance
Outline peer influences in terms of psychological explanations of AN
Peer acceptance is particularly important during adolescences so they may be particularly susceptible to peer influence on patterns of disordered eating - a specific mechanism of peer influence is teasing
Name the 2 studies relating to peer influences in terms of psychological explanations of AN
1) Eisenberg (05)
2) Jones & Crawford (06)
Outline Eisenberg (5)
Dieting among friends is significantly related to unhealthy weight control behaviours like the use of diet pills and purging
Outline Jones & Crawford (06)
Found overweight girls and underweight boys were most likely to be teased by their peers, suggesting that through teasing, peers serve to enforce gender-biased ideals
What is the study which looked into the effect of childhood on development of AN?
Hilde Bruch (73)
Outline Hilde Bruch (73)
Claimed origins AN in early childhood - distinguished between effective parents who respond appropriately to child’s needs (feeding them when hungry), and ineffective parents who fail to respond to child’s internal needs (comforting them when hungry) - children of ineffective parents may grow up confused about their internal needs, becoming overly reliant on parents - adolescence increases desire to establish autonomy, but adolescents are often unable to do so, feeling do not own their bodies - to overcome sense of helplessness, can take excessive control over body shape and size by developing abnormal eating habits
What are the 2 aspects of personality in terms of psychological explanations of AN?
1) Perfectionism
2) Impulsiveness
Outline perfectionism for personality in terms of psychological explanations of AN
Concern for mistakes - often found in individuals with An and other eating disorders
What study relates to perfectionism for personality in terms of psychological explanations of AN?
Strober (06)
Outline Strober (06)
Retrospectively evaluated personality traits in teenage boys and girls receiving treatment for AN and found high levels of perfectionism in 73% of girls and 50% of boys
Outline impulsiveness for personality in terms of psychological explanations of AN
Recent research show individuals with AN act more impulsively than they self-report
What study relates to impulsiveness for personality in terms of psychological explanations of AN?
Butler & Montgomery (05)
Outline Butler & Montgomery (05)
Found that compared to normal control group, patients with An responded rapidly (but inaccurately) to performance task, indicating behavioural impulsiveness, despite low self-reported impulsiveness
Evaluate cultural ideals in terms of psychological explanations of AN
Hoek (98) set out to test view that AN is rare in non-western cultures - examined records of 44,192 people admitted to hospital 1987-89 in non-westernised Caribbean island where it is acceptable to be overweight - found 6 cases - a rate they claim is within ranges of AN reported western countries
Evaluate media influences in terms of psychological explanations of AN
Evidence for the role of media in shaping perceptions of body image comes from studies of societies where TV has been introduced - eating attitudes and behaviours studies among adolescent Fijian girls following introduction of TV in 1995 - Becker (02) girls stated desire to lose weight and become more like western TV characters - however Yamamiya (05) showed that instructional intervention prior to media exposure to idealised female images prevents adverse effect of exposure
Evaluate ethnicity in terms of psychological explanations of AN
Not all studies have found differences in incidence of AN between black and white groups
What are the 2 studies relating to the evaluation of ethnicity in terms of psychological explanations of AN?
1) Cachelin & Regan (06)
2) Roberts (06)
Outline Cachelin & Regan (06)
Found no significant differences in prevalence of disordered eating between African-American and white Caucasian groups
Outline Roberts (06)
Stereotypical view white populations have higher incidence of AN than black populations appears to be only true in older adolescents
What is the study relating to the evaluation of peer influences in terms of psychological explanations of AN?
Shroff & Thompson (06)
Outline Shroff & Thompson (06)
Found no correlation between friends on measures of disordered eating in an adolescent sample
Evaluative peer influences in terms of psychological explanations of AN
Research not always show significant relationship between peer influence and development of AN - although Jones & Crawford found overweight girls and underweight boys more likely to be teased, gender differences do not emerge until adolescence
What are the 3 studies and pieces of evidence for the evaluation of Bruch’s psychodynamic explanation in terms of psychological explanations of AN?
1) Steiner (91)
2) Bruch found many of these parents claimed to anticipate children’s needs rather than ever letting them feel hungry
3) Button & Warren (01)
Outline Steiner (91)
Theory supported by observations that parents of adolescents with AN have tendency to define children’s physical needs rather than allowing children to define their own
Outline Button & Warren (01)
Research also supports Bruch’s claim that people with AN rely excessively on opinions of others, worry about how others view them and feel a lack of control over their lives
What is the main negative point about personality in terms of psychological explanations of AN?
There are methodological issues - these include separating out lasting personality traits from short-lived states that may be caused by starvation - in addition, there is a frequent reliance on clinically diagnosed samples, which represents a biased view of relationship between personality and disordered thinking
What are the 2 studies for the evaluation of perfectionism for personality in terms of psychological explanations of AN?
1) Halmi (00)
2) Nilsson (99)
Outline Halmi (00)
Investigated relationship between perfectionism and AN in 322 women with history of AN across Europe and the US - results showed individuals with history of AN scored significantly higher on the multidimensional perfectionism scale when compared to a comparison group of healthy women - in addition, extent of perfectionism directly relates to severity of AN experiences by the women - researchers also included patients with relatives who also suffered from AN and enlisted them - results showed perfectionism as personality trait appears to run in families and therefore represents genetic vulnerability (diathesis) for development of AN
Outline Nilsson (99)
Longitudinal study - shows importance of perfectionism in duration of AN - individuals who had short illness duration had lower levels of perfectionism and those with high levels more at risk of long illness duration
Name the 2 IDA points in terms of psychological explanations of AN
1) Ethical issues
2) Real-world application
Explain the ethical issues for psychological explanations of AN
Researchers turning to internet communities as rich source of data relating to AN from those who have actually had the disorder or those who support them - however, raises concerns relating to privacy, informed consent, protection of confidentially and potential harm of research
Explain the real-world application for psychological explanations of AN
Research demonstrating harmful effect of media for body dissatisfaction and eating disorders has had some effect on the fashion industry - fashion industry in France has signed a charter which involves a pledge by fashion houses, advertising agencies and magazine editors to use a diversity of body types and not to stereotype the ‘thin ideal’
