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Associations among eating disorder symptoms and the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2-Restructured Form (MMPI-2-RF) in college students

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Eating and Weight Disorders - Studies on Anorexia, Bulimia and Obesity Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose

To identify associations between eating disorder (ED) attitudes and behaviors and scores on the MMPI-2-RF in college students.

Methods

The study included 425 undergraduate students (38.5% males and 61.5% females) with a mean age of 19.13 (SD = 1.77). Measures included the MMPI-2-RF and the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire. Correlations and relative risk ratios were computed between MMPI-2-RF scores and ED variables.

Results

Scores on several MMPI-2-RF Scales were associated with the presence of subthreshold ED symptoms. Manifestations of emotional/internalizing dysfunction were associated with all ED symptom presentations.

Conclusions

The results of this study identified narrowly defined personality and psychopathology constructs relevant to, and found across college students experiencing various subthreshold ED symptoms. Considering this additional information in ED screening or treatment planning could reduce the likelihood of subthreshold symptoms worsening and increase the effectiveness of ED interventions with at-risk college student populations.

Level of evidence

Level III, evidence obtained from well-designed cohort or case–control analytic studies.

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Acknowledgements

Yossef Ben-Porath, Ph.D., is a paid consultant to the MMPI-2-RF publisher, the University of Minnesota Press, and distributor, Pearson Assessments. He receives royalties on sales of MMPI-2-RF materials and research grants from the MMPI-2-RF publisher.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychological Sciences, Kent State University, 144 Kent Hall, Kent, OH, 44242, USA

    Katy W. Martin-Fernandez & Yossef S. Ben-Porath

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  1. Katy W. Martin-Fernandez
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Correspondence to Katy W. Martin-Fernandez.

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Katy W. Martin-Fernandez, M.A., declares that she has no conflict of interest.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional research committee (Kent State University Institutional Review Board in coordination with the Office of Research Compliance) and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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This article does not contain any studies with animals performed by any of the authors.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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This article is part of topical collection on personality and eating and weight disorders.

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Martin-Fernandez, K.W., Ben-Porath, Y.S. Associations among eating disorder symptoms and the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2-Restructured Form (MMPI-2-RF) in college students. Eat Weight Disord 25, 1311–1320 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40519-019-00764-y

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