This study compared the prevalence of bulimia and the attitudes toward food and weight in a Black college population with the results obtained from a similar study of Caucasian college students (Gray & Ford, 1985). A 34‐item questionnaire containing an operationalized version of the DSM‐III criteria for bulimia (American Psychiatric Association, 1980) and demographic information was completed by 507 (341 women, 166 men) Black college students. Results showed there were significantly fewer Black women than Caucasian women who met the DSM‐III and bulimia nervosa critria for bulimia. In addition, Black college women were found to be less likely to experience a sense of fear and discouragement concerning food and weight control than Caucasian women. The prevalence of bulimia was very low to nonexistent in both the Black and Caucasian male samples. These findings were discussed in regard to differential attitudes toward weight and beauty among the two ethnic groups.
Investigation of binge eating and dietary restraint has previously been limited to subjects within Western societies. We investigated these two phenomena in 218 Arab students in Egypt, using the Restraint Scale (Polivy, Herman, & Warsh, 1978) and the Binge Scale (Hawkins & Clement, 1980). The psychometric characteristics of the scales were investigated. Although exploratory factor analysis showed support for the Restraint Scale subscales in women, no coherent factor structure was found for men. Factor analysis also revealed differing factor structures for men and women in the Binge Scale. The internal validity of the scales for men was also poor, thus the application of these two instruments to Arab men is questionable. A significant correlation of Binge Scale and Restraint Scale scores was found for both genders indicating support for the hypothesized link between the phenomena in a non‐Western culture. Further comparison of the Arab women's scores with those previously reported in Western studies showed a significantly lower level of restraint for the Arab women. We suggest that restraint theory is cross‐culturally applicable for women, although cultural factors may mediate the level of restraint shown.
The diagnosis and treatment of bulimia in underdeveloped countries is not well documented. The following is a case study of a young Egyptian woman who met the diagnosis for bulimia according to DSM‐/I/‐R (Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, American Psychiatric Association, 1987) and was treated in her native country of Egypt. The study examines individual and familial issues relevant to the disorder as well as hypotheses about the effects of conflicts engendered by cross‐cultural and sociocultural factors on the etiology of the disorder.
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