Measures were made of body image and personality features in patients with anorexia nervosa and obesity. It was hypothesized that obese and anorexic patients would display similar body image disturbances characterized by relative overestimation of body size in comparison with control subjects. Body image was measured by both a distorting photograph technique (a general measure) and a visual size estimation apparatus (for specific body regions). Personality features were assessed by the Eysenck Personality Inventory and a modified version of Rotter's Locus of Control Scale. Results indicated that both obese (N=16) and anorexic (N=18) subjects significantly differed from three control groups (P less than 0.01) in body size estimation on a general measure of body image. A measure of specific body regions did not differentiate between groups. For anorexic and obese patients, body size estimates were significantly correlated with personality features.

A study of 20 manic patients, with patient and matched control comparisons, showed a two fold increase in life events during the 4 month period before admission to hospital. Life events, independent of affective illness and having significant objective negative impact (i.e. traumatic) were significantly more common. These findings are considered in relation to social relationships, family history of affective illness and the use of psychotropic medication.

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Patients with anorexia nervosa have been shown previously to display distortions in body image perception. Bruch has postulated that these disturbances as well as disturbances in interoception are meaningfully related to the development of the syndrome. We hypothesized that disturbances in body image, as measured by a distorting photograph technique, and interoception, as measured by a satiety-aversion to sucrose test, should be demonstrable in anorexic patients vs. normal controls. Furthermore, these disturbances should be modifiable by external cues (looking at one's image in a mirror and ingesting isocaloric "high" and "low" calorie connotation meals). We also hypothesized that body image and interoceptive disturbances would be interrelated in the same individuals. Results indicated that patients with anorexia nervosa (N = 26) differed from normal controls (N = 16) in overestimating their body sizes (p = 0.06) and in failing to develop an aversion to the sucrose tastes (p less than 0.001). However, neither viewing one's image in a mirror nor ingesting both "high and "low" calorie connotation meals altered body size perception. Intrasubject body size estimates were very stable from week to week for the anorexic subjects (r = +0.75, p less than 0.001) but less for the controls (r = +0.45, p less than 0.05). The data revealed that overestimation of body size was closely related to the failure to develop an aversion to sucrose tastes in anorexic patients.