- Title
- The role of self-compassion in the relationship between adult attachment and disordered eating
- Creator
- Ross, Isabelle
- Relation
- University of Newcastle Research Higher Degree Thesis
- Resource Type
- thesis
- Date
- 2024
- Description
- Masters Coursework - Master of Clinical Psychology (MClinPsych)
- Description
- Insecure attachment has been linked to lower self-compassion and greater disordered eating symptoms, and there is growing evidence that self-compassion is a protective factor against eating disorder pathology. The present study examines whether self-compassion mediates the association of close relationship expectancies (attachment anxiety and security) to disordered eating symptoms. Methods: Secondary, cross-sectional data from 327 undergraduate psychology students was analysed. Trait attachment, self-compassion, and disordered eating symptoms were self-reported. Mediation analyses were conducted to investigate the mediating effects of self-compassion on disordered eating symptoms. Results: Self-compassion partially mediated the association of attachment anxiety to disordered eating, and fully mediated the attachment security to disordered eating relationship. Attachment security uniquely predicted disordered eating outcomes via self-compassion, and among the two attachment dimensions, attachment anxiety had a stronger influence on disordered eating outcomes. Discussion: These results indicate that self-compassion may be a useful intervention target for the treatment of sub-clinical or diagnosed eating disorders, and provide evidence that conceptualising attachment security as low levels of attachment insecurity may be insufficient conceptually and psychometrically.
- Subject
- attachment anxiety; attachment security; self-compassion; disordered eating symptoms; restrictive eating behaviour
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1497210
- Identifier
- uon:54308
- Rights
- Copyright 2024 Isabelle Ross
- Language
- eng
- Full Text
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| Thumbnail | File | Description | Size | Format | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| View Details Download | ATTACHMENT01 | Thesis | 23 MB | Adobe Acrobat PDF | View Details Download | ||
| View Details Download | ATTACHMENT02 | Abstract | 1 MB | Adobe Acrobat PDF | View Details Download |