NONCLINICAL HAIR-PULLING - AFFECTIVE CORRELATES AND COMPARISON WITH CLINICAL-SAMPLES

The purposes of the current study were to examine the affective states associated with hair-pulling in a nonclinical sample and to compare l evels of general psychopathology in nonclinical hair-pullers and clini c patients with trichotillomania (TM) or obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). Subjects included 66 college undergraduates who engaged in hai r-pulling unrelated to grooming, 18 patients with TM and 29 patients w ith OCD. Dimensional (but not categorical) ratings of affective experi ences in the nonclinical sample indicated that hair-pulling was associ ated with decreases in tension, boredom, anger and sadness. Further, t he relationship between emotional experiences before and after hair-pu lling was more salient that the pre-during relationship conceptualized as central in current diagnostic criteria for TM. Comparisons of psyc hopathology in nonclinical and clinical samples failed to support a co ntinuum notion of increasing symptomatology in nonclinical pullers, TM patients and individuals with OCD. Some evidence of increased patholo gy in nonclinical pullers relative to TM patients was obtained, as was further support for a distinction between TM and OCD. Implications of this investigation for conceptualization of TM are discussed.