FPI profiles in a European sample of 1068 female patients suffering from anorexia or bulimia nervosa

Abstract

Thirty‐two centres from nine European countries participated in a research programme about eating disorders. This study presents results of patients aged 17–26 years suffering from anorexia (N = 418) and bulimia nervosa (N = 650) according to DSM‐IV criteria (American Psychiatric Association, 1994). Patients' personality profiles were assessed with the revised version of the Freiburger Personality Inventory (FPI‐R). Compared to the comparison subjects, the eating‐disordered patients showed lower life satisfaction, health concern and extraversion and higher social orientation, inhibition, irritability, strain, somatic complaints, frankness and emotionality. Anorexic patients had similar scores to the comparison group on achievement orientation and aggressiveness scales. Non‐purging bulimic patients were not different from comparison subjects in aggressiveness and purging bulimic patients showed no difference for extraversion. Differences in the diagnostic subgroups are discussed in light of the literature in this area. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and Eating Disorders Association.

Personality correlates of eating pathology severity and subtypes in The National Comorbidity Survey Adolescent Supplement

“…While several additional personality traits have been linked to EDs and disordered eating behavior in young adult and adult samples, studies examining these links in adolescents are limited and, in some cases, diverge from the young adult and adult literature. For instance, two studies of young adults found that extraversion is lower among those with AN‐R, AN‐B/P, or BN, relative to young adults without EP (without controlling for other psychopathology; Massoubre et al, 2005; Tasca et al, 2009), whereas a study of adolescents did not find an association between extraversion and disordered eating behaviors (Gual et al, 2002). One review (Farstad et al, 2016) noted that discrepancies in the literature pertaining to extraversion and EP may be due to differences between studies that examine subclinical disordered eating symptoms (i.e., Gual et al, 2002) rather than clinical EDs, further highlighting the importance of examining personality across a range of EP severities.…”

Self-Monitoring in Anorexia Nervosa

“…On the other hand, eating problems have been found to be negatively associated with Extraversion (Brookings & Wilson, 1994). Women with AN tend to be less extraverted than controls (Massoubre et al, 2005;Solyom et al, 1982). We therefore expected with women with AN to score lower than never-ill women on the Extraversion subscale of the SMS.…”