Identity processes and eating disorder symptoms during university adjustment: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

Background Young people with eating disorders (EDs) and ED symptoms are at risk during university adjustment, suggesting a need to protect their health. The social identity approach proposes that people’s social connections – and the identity-related behaviour they derive from them – are important for promoting positive health outcomes. However, there is a limited understanding as to how meaningful everyday connections, supported by affiliative identities, may act to reduce ED symptoms during a life transition. Methods Two hundred eighty-one first year university students with an ED or ED symptoms completed an online survey during the first month of university. Participants completed self-reported measures of affiliative identity, social support, injunctive norms and ED symptoms. Path analysis was used to test a hypothesised mediated model, whereby affiliative identity has a significant indirect relation with ED symptoms via social support and injunctive norms. Results Results support the hypothesised model. We show that affiliative identity predicts lower self-reported ED symptoms, because of its relation with social support and injunctive norms. Conclusions The findings imply that affiliative identities have a positive impact on ED symptoms during university adjustment, because the social support derived from affiliative identity is associated with how people perceive norms around disordered eating. Our discussion emphasises the possibility of identity processes being a social cure for those at risk of ED symptoms.

Affiliative identity, well‐being and eating disorder symptoms during the transition to university

“…Ethical approval for the full project was received from the authors institutional Research Ethics Committee. As detailed in Foran et al (2021), a recruitment email was first sent to all first‐year students at an Irish university and students needed to have concerns around ED symptoms or a diagnosed ED to partake. Data collection began for participants who met the survey criteria during the first 4 weeks of their university transition in September 2019 2 .…”

“…Data collection began for participants who met the survey criteria during the first 4 weeks of their university transition in September 2019 2 . This resulted in a Time 1 (T1) sample of 281 (237 women and 44 men; M age = 20.24, SD = 5.05, range = 18–56 years; as reported in Foran et al, 2021). In order to participate in subsequent surveys, T1 participants were asked to provide their email address.…”

“…The social identity approach has primarily been applied to cross‐sectional studies of eating disorders. For example, social identity researchers have demonstrated that group identification is important to reduce ED symptoms (Foran, Muldoon, & O'Donnell, 2021; McNamara et al, 2022) and to improve psychological well‐being (Chang et al, 2016; Jetten et al, 2017). In addition, De Vos, Radstaak, Bohlmeijer, and Westerhof (2018) found that psychological well‐being is a significant predictor of reduced ED symptoms.…”

“…Cross-sectional findings from the T1 sample are already published (seeForan et al, 2021).3 Between T2 and T3, 25 participants who completed the T1 and T2 surveys dropped out/were no longer registered at the university, and therefore, were no longer contactable by email.…”

Sociodemographic Variables and Body Mass Index Associated with the Risk of Eating Disorders in Spanish University Students

“…The passage through university for many young people represents a complex experience, in which they will encounter stressors that heighten their susceptibility to succumbing to mental health disorders of various kinds [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]. The scientific evidence suggests that both the particular characteristics of the life cycle and the demands of university life (heavier academic workload, adaptation to changing social solidarity and networks, greater autonomy, increased responsibility, vocational and academic failure, moving home, living alone) increase the probability of emergent emotional difficulties that, if not properly treated, will metamorphose into clinical disorders [ 1 , 4 , 5 ].…”