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Bulimic symptoms in undergraduate men and women: Contributions of mindfulness and thought suppression
Eating Behaviors
Format: Journal Article
Publication Date: Nov 30, 2008
Pages: 228 - 231
Sources ID: 108306
Visibility: Public (group default)
Abstract: (Show)
Experiential avoidance, the refusal to accept contact with unpleasant private experiences, is believed to play a role in the onset and maintenance of eating disorders. Preliminary evidence suggests that mindfulness- and acceptance-based interventions that reduce avoidance may be effective in treating disordered eating behaviors. The purpose of the current investigation was to examine whether one form of experiential avoidance (thought suppression) and the theoretically opposing construct of dispositional mindfulness are associated with bulimic symptoms. Undergraduate men (n=219) and women (n=187) completed questionnaires assessing mindful attention and awareness, chronic thought suppression, and bulimic symptoms. A series of hierarchical regression analyses revealed that thought suppression and mindfulness accounted for unique variance in bulimic symptoms among men and women after accounting for BMI. Results are discussed in terms of the role of dispositional mindfulness and thought suppression in disordered eating.