Profiling orthorexia nervosa in young adults: the role of obsessive behaviour, perfectionism, and self-esteem

BACKGROUND

Orthorexia nervosa (ON) is a relatively new potential eating disorder characterized by an intense fixation on one's eating habits and the imposition of rigid and inflexible rules on oneself. Psychological factors such as obsessive-compulsive tendencies, perfectionism and self-esteem may interact in complex ways and contribute to the development and maintenance of ON.

METHODS

This cross-sectional study included 977 participants from Italy, Lebanon, and Poland. Participants completed a questionnaire consisting of socio-demographic information, the Eating Habits Questionnaire, Obsessive-Compulsive Inventory, Obsessive Beliefs Questionnaire-44, Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale, and Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale. Cluster analysis was used to identify subgroups of individuals with common psychological characteristics associated with ON.

RESULTS

Three distinct clusters were identified based on their levels of obsession-compulsive beliefs, perfectionism, and self-esteem. The first group, labeled "High Self-Mastery," consisted of 37.0% of participants and exhibited low levels of obsession-compulsion, obsessive beliefs, and perfectionism, but high self-esteem. The second group, "Moderate Self-Mastery," comprised 39.5% of participants and had moderate levels of these traits. The third group, "Low Self-Mastery," consisted of 23.6% of participants and exhibited the highest levels of obsession-compulsion, obsessive beliefs, and perfectionism, but the lowest self-esteem. Additionally, a multivariable analysis revealed that being Lebanese (Beta = 3.39) and belonging to the last cluster (Beta = 4.53) were significantly associated with higher ON tendencies.

CONCLUSION

Our findings show that individuals with low self-mastery, characterized by low self-esteem and high levels of obsessive perfectionism, are more likely to exhibit ON tendencies. This study emphasizes the need to have a comprehensive understanding of how cultural and psychological factors interact in the development of eating disorders.

"What does not kill you… mutates and tries again." A study on personality determinants of post-traumatic growth during the COVID-19 pandemic

Introduction. The COVID-19 pandemic was recognized as a collective trauma and as a major threat to mental health. Recent literature focused on the stress symptomatology or post-traumatic stress disorder associated to the COVID-19 exposure. The concept that people have a natural inclination toward growth, even under stressful and threatening events, gathered less attention. Previous research has analyzed antecedents of post-traumatic growth (PTG) with non-conclusive results. Methods. The present research aimed at including findings on PTG from personality traits, i.e., sense of control and self-mastery, and distal condition of nurturance and support received by others, i.e., cognitive and affective well-being. Analyses were based on 4934 interviews with adults (Mage = 57.81 years, 55.5% women) from the Swiss Household Panel study. Results. Relationships over time emerged between sense of control and self-mastery on PTG and worries, measured after two years, via the mediation of cognitive and affective well-being. Conclusion. Results come from a large study in a design seldom employed in this type of research and can inform both research and interventions.

Characteristics associated with quality of life among people with drug-resistant epilepsy

Quality of Life (QoL) is the preferred outcome in non-pharmacological trials, but there is little UK population evidence of QoL in epilepsy. In advance of evaluating an epilepsy self-management course we aimed to describe, among UK participants, what clinical and psycho-social characteristics are associated with QoL. We recruited 404 adults attending specialist clinics, with at least two seizures in the prior year and measured their self-reported seizure frequency, co-morbidity, psychological distress, social characteristics, including self-mastery and stigma, and epilepsy-specific QoL (QOLIE-31-P). Mean age was 42 years, 54% were female, and 75% white. Median time since diagnosis was 18 years, and 69% experienced ≥10 seizures in the prior year. Nearly half (46%) reported additional medical or psychiatric conditions, 54% reported current anxiety and 28% reported current depression symptoms at borderline or case level, with 63% reporting felt stigma. While a maximum QOLIE-31-P score is 100, participants’ mean score was 66, with a wide range (25–99). In order of large to small magnitude: depression, low self-mastery, anxiety, felt stigma, a history of medical and psychiatric comorbidity, low self-reported medication adherence, and greater seizure frequency were associated with low QOLIE-31-P scores. Despite specialist care, UK people with epilepsy and persistent seizures experience low QoL. If QoL is the main outcome in epilepsy trials, developing and evaluating ways to reduce psychological and social disadvantage are likely to be of primary importance. Educational courses may not change QoL, but be one component supporting self-management for people with long-term conditions, like epilepsy.