Disordered Eating in NCAA Athletes The Roles of Sex, Self-Esteem, and Other Psychosocial Factors

Date of Award

2006

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Social Sciences

First Advisor

Ryan, Kimberly

Keywords

Eating Disorders, Athletes, Self-Esteem

Area of Concentration

Psychology

Abstract

Objective: This study will outline differences between males' and females' disordered eating behaviors in the hopes of lending support to a differential diagnosis for athletes. Methods: The participants were 1,445 Division I NCAA athletes drawn from 11 different schools and 11 different sports. These athletes were asked to fill out portions of the EDI-2, the Body Cathexis Scale, and the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale in addition to providing pertinent demographic information. Results: Contrary to prediction, males reported earlier onsets for most compensatory behaviors. As predicted, however, males tended to use most compensatory behaviors primarily in season, in contrast to females who used them both in and out of season for their sport. Athletic factors seemed to contribute most highly to the onset of eating problems. Discussion: Because of the high rates of disordered eating in this sample and the large role athletics played in these behaviors, a differential diagnosis for athletes is recommended.

Rights

This bibliographic record is available under the Creative Commons CC0 public domain dedication. The New College of Florida, as creator of this bibliographic record, has waived all rights to it worldwide under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights, to the extent allowed by law.

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