Eating-disordered patients have relatively high rates of comorbid personality disorder diagnoses, including both anxiety-based personality disorders (obsessive-compulsive and avoidant) and borderline personality disorder. However, there is preliminary evidence that the core cognitions underlying personality pathology in the eating disorders are those related specifically to anxiety. This paper builds on that evidence, replicating and extending the findings with a large sample of eating-disordered patients (N = 374). There were no differences in personality disorder cognitions between eating disorder diagnoses. The study also examines the possibility that there are clusters of patients, differentiated by patterns of personality disorder cognition. Affect-related personality disorder cognitions were key to understanding the role of personality pathology in the eating disorders. It is suggested that those cognitions should be considered when planning psychological treatments.

Social anxiety is a common comorbid problem in the eating disorders. The present study investigated whether specific types of core beliefs are common in eating-disordered individuals presenting with high levels of social anxiety. The participants were a group of 191 women meeting Diagnostic and Statistical Manual-IV (DSM-IV) criteria for an eating disorder. Young's Schema Questionnaire (YSQ-S) was used as a measure of core beliefs, while a brief version of the Fear of Negative Evaluation scale (Brief FNE) was used as a measure of social anxiety. The results showed that eating-disordered individuals with high levels of comorbid social anxiety report higher levels of socially-oriented core beliefs (abandonment; defectiveness/shame) than those who experience low levels of social anxiety. The findings highlight the potential importance of addressing core beliefs in specific groups of eating-disordered individuals. Implications for future research and clinical practice are discussed.

No abstract