Illness representation, psychosocial adjustment and psychological distress in patients with eating disorders

Abstract

The present work had as objective describing the illness representation in patients with eating disorders (ED) and evaluating its relationship with psychosocial adjustment and psychological distress following Leventhal’s Self-Regulation Model. Fifty-six patients diagnosed with an ED participated, who were being treated at a specialized unit and at a primary care center, and who had completed the BIPQ, PAIS-SR, HADS, and the GHQ-12. The patients perceived that their disorder posed serious consequences to their life, and that treatment would help improve their condition. They considered that the disorder had negative emotions associated with it, in addition to them perceiving scarce control over the problem. The perception of consequences and the emotional representation were associated with worse psychosocial adjustment and psychological distress. However, the perception of personal control was related with better psychosocial and emotional adjustment. The findings in this work point out the importance of considering individual cognitions in these patients regarding their disorder, with the aim of intervening via treatment of these beliefs in order to improve the adjustment and diminish negative emotional repercussions.