Assessing the relevance of the hopelessness theory of depression to women with disordered eating

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the relevance of the hopelessness theory of depression to women with partial-syndrome eating disorders.

Method: Three groups of women, one meeting criteria for eating disorders not otherwise specified (EDNOS), one with major depression, and a control group, completed the Balanced Attributional Style Questionnaire, the Eating Disorders Examination Questionnaire, and the Beck Depression Inventory.

Results: Once levels of depression were controlled, all three groups differed significantly with respect to their attributional style for bad events, with the depressed group showing the greatest tendency to attribute the causes of negative life events to internal factors. However, with respect to the attributional style for good events, the depressed and control group displayed similar styles of attribution, whereas the EDNOS group showed a significantly more dysfunctional style, being more likely to attribute positive events to external factors.

Discussion: These findings are discussed in terms of their implications for specific therapeutic interventions with disordered eating.