Bulimic psychopathology and attentional biases to ego threats among non-eating-disordered women

Objective: It has been proposed that bulimic psychopathology is associated with responsiveness to ego threats, rather than to physical threat. However, the concept of ego threat is a heterogeneous one, and needs to be more clearly defined. This study examined the relationship between bulimic attitudes and attentional biases to different forms of threat. Method: The participants were 80 non-eating-disordered women, drawn from school and University populations. Each woman completed a Stroop task, measuring attentional biases toward five different forms of threat. Their times to complete these tasks were associated with scores on the Eating Disorders Inventory. Results: Bulimic (but not restrictive) attitudes were specifically associated with an attentional bias toward ego threats that are self-directed, rather than with ego threats that are perceived to come from others. Discussion: It is suggested that there is a complex relationship between attention to self-directed ego threats, poor self-esteem (ineffectiveness), and bulimic psychopathology, although the causal structure of the relationship remains to be established. The results require replication with an eating-disordered sample. (C) 1996 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.