115,250 research outputs found
Anoressia e organizzazioni mentali d'attaccamento: uno studio con l'Adult Attachment Interview
No full textAttachment mental representations in Eating Disorders: A pilotstudy using the Adult Attachment Interview
No full textMental representations of attachment in a sample of adults with Eating Disorders (ED) were assessed using the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI). Sixty subjects participated in the study: 30 non-clinical and 30 clinical. The results obtained
showed a specific distribution of attachment patterns in the clinical sample: 10% Free/Autonomous (F), 47% Insecure-Dismissing (Ds), 17% Insecure-Entangled/Preoccupied (E) and about 26% disorganized (CC/U). The two samples differed in their attachment pattern distribution and were significantly different on some coding system scales. Further information was obtained by analyzing differences
between the three ED subtypes considered (i.e. Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa and Binge Eating Disorder) and by investigating the differential role of the two parental figures in the definition of attachment representations. Results
showed potential benefits in using the AAI coding system scales in addition to the main classifications in order to understand better the developmental issues
involved in these disorders. Implications for developmental research and clinical nosology are discussed.
Keywords: attachment; Adult Attachment Interview; Eating Disorders;developmental factors; Eating Disorders subtype
Clima familiare e stile di attaccamento in famiglie a rischio e affidatarie: una ricerca esplorativa
No full textInsecure Internal Working Models (IWMs) of women with Eating Disorders with and without Borderline Personality Disorders
No full textIntroduction. Many studies supports the hypothesis that women with eating disorders (ED) show dismissing Internal Working Models (IWMs). However, others revealed that they often display both dismissing and preoccupied IWMs, or a prevalence of the latter. Moreover, a relevant presence of unresolved with respect to loss and/or trauma emerged among ED patients. In addition, no studies up to now have considered the issue of co-morbidity of ED with Borderline Personality Disorder (BPD).
Objectives. Ours goals have been twofold. First we examined the IWMs of women with ED compared with a matched non-clinical group. Second, we explored the differences of IWMs among ED patients with and without BPD’s diagnosis.
Methods. Clinical participants were 50 patients with ED, all between 16 and 25 years, and without any concurrent severe psychiatric disturbance on Axis-I (e.g. psychosis, etc). Moreover, 50 non clinical participants were recruited from community and matched for sex, age, years of education. The Adult Attachment Interview (AAI) was used to assess the attachment’s IWMs. All AAI transcripts were analyzed by two expert and blinded coders on the AAI’s coding system, yielding five global categories: free-autonomous, insecure-dismissing, insecure-preoccupied, unresolved and cannot classify.
Results. An over-representation of insecure-dismissing attachment IWMs was revealed among eating disordered women. Moreover patients who had a double diagnosis of ED and BPD showed higher scores on involving anger and unresolved loss compared with those with only ED.
Discussion. These results seem to be in line with Dozier’s hypothesis suggesting that individuals with psychological disorders leading to an outward focus (“externalizing” perspective) –such as ED– would go together with a more dismissive stance to their own attachment experiences and a minimization of their attachment needs. Further longitudinal research, using a larger community, both at risk and clinical samples, could be useful to explore the causal process direction
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