FBTY for young adults with AN and atypical AN, which involves support adults participants have chosen, results in weight restoration that is sustained up to a year after treatment. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. (Int J Eat Disord 2016; 49:701-707).

BackgroundReward and punishment sensitivities have been identified as potential contributors to binge eating and compensatory behaviors, though few studies have examined gender differences in these behaviors.MethodA college-aged sample (N = 1,022) completed both the Eating Disorders Diagnostic Scale (EDDS) and Sensitivity to Punishment/Sensitivity to Reward Questionnaire (SPSRQ).ResultsRates of binge eating were similar in males and females. Among those reporting compensatory behaviors, women reported engaging in compensatory behaviors more frequently than men. Sensitivity to reward and sensitivity to punishment were both positively associated with binge eating frequency in both genders. In contrast, women with high reward sensitivity reported engaging in compensatory behaviors more frequently.ConclusionsRates of binge eating and compensatory weight control behaviors were similar between college-aged males and females, though females who engaged in compensatory behaviors did so more frequently than males. Sensitivity to punishment was greater in females, whereas sensitivity to reward was greater in males. Reward and punishment sensitivity were each positively associated with binge eating in both males and females, while only reward sensitivity was positively associated with compensatory behaviors in females.

Objective Executive functioning (EF) problems may serve as vulnerability or maintenance factors for Binge-eating Disorder (BED). However, it is unclear if EF problems observed in BED are related to overweight status or BED status. The current study extends this literature by examining EF in overweight and normal-weight BED compared to weight-matched controls. Method Participants were women with normal-weight BED (n=23), overweight BED (n=32), overweight healthy controls (n=48), and normal-weight healthy controls (n=29). The EF battery utilized tests from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Toolbox and Delis-Kaplan Executive Function System (D-KEFS). Results After controlling for years of education and minority status, overweight individuals performed more poorly than normal-weight individuals on a task of cognitive flexibility requiring generativity (p < 0.01) and speed on psychomotor performance tasks (p = 0.01). Normal-weight and overweight BED performed worse on working memory tasks compared to controls (p = 0.04). Unexpectedly, normal-weight BED individuals out-performed all other groups on an inhibitory control task (p < 0.01). No significant differences were found between the four groups on tasks of planning. Discussion Regardless of weight status, BED is associated with working memory problems. Replication of the finding that normal-weight BED is associated with enhanced inhibitory control is needed.

Eating disorders and social anxiety are highly co-occurring. These disorders share fears of social evaluation, possibly maintained by similar cognitive content and styles, including an inability to adapt or flexibly respond to unexpected conditions. However, the role of cognitive inflexibility in eating disorders in relation to social anxiety has not been explored. Objective In this study, the link between eating disorder symptoms and cognitive inflexibility, while accounting for social anxiety, is examined. Method Participants (N = 461) were undergraduates who completed the Detail and Flexibility Questionnaire 12-item Cognitive Rigidity subscale, the Eating Disorders Diagnostic Scale, and the Social Interaction Anxiety Scale. Results Eating disorder symptoms and social anxiety were both positively correlated with cognitive inflexibility. After controlling for social anxiety, the relationship between eating disorder symptoms and cognitive inflexibility remained robust. Discussion Further examination of cognitive inflexibility in eating disorders and comorbid social anxiety in clinical samples is warranted. We suggest future directions for examining cognitive inflexibility as a trans-diagnostic construct important to eating disorders and frequently comorbid disorders, consistent with NIMH Research Domain Criteria.

Body image concerns in binge eating disorder (BED) have been examined almost exclusively in overweight individuals with BED. The current study extends past research by including overweight and normal weight BED and non-BED groups to assess the multifactorial construct of body image using subscales of the Eating Disorder Examination 16.0 (EDE-16.0) and a Body Comparison Task. Independent of weight status and when controlling for age and race, women with BED are distinguished from those without BED by significantly greater overvaluation of shape and weight on the EDE-16.0 and significantly reduced weight satisfaction after a Body Comparison Task. Both BED diagnosis and weight status were independently associated with Weight Concern and Shape Concern subscales on the EDE-16.0. Taken together, these data provide further support for the consideration of body image concerns in the diagnostic criteria for BED.