Bulimic Women's Perceptions of Interaction within Their Families

Abstract

The association between women's perceptions of the interaction within their families and symptomatology related to eating was investigated in a case series of 81 women suffering from bulimic disorders. Bingeing was more frequent when the family was perceived to have poor problem-solving skills but was less frequent when the women perceived their families as having a more cohesive style. In contrast, abnormal restriction of intake was linked, although not significantly, to the converse pattern of perceived interaction within the family—greater when the family was relatively cohesive and lower when the family had good problem-solving skills The same family characteristics appear to be ‘risky’ for some symptoms and ‘protective’ against others.