BODILY SHAME IN RELATION TO ABUSE IN CHILDHOOD AND BULIMIA - A PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATION

Bodily shame has been shown to play a mediating role in the relationsh ip between experiences of childhood physical and sexual abuse and depr ession in mature women (Andrews, 1995). The current study investigated the role of such shame in the relationship between childhood abuse an d bulimia in a community sample of 69 teenage and young adult women. A significant association between bodily shame and childhood abuse was replicated in this younger sample, an association which could not be e xplained by bodily dissatisfaction. In addition, bodily shame was sign ificantly related to DSM-III bulimia, and this relationship could also not be explained by bodily dissatisfaction. Childhood abuse showed a significant association with bulimia, but this was no longer apparent once bodily shame had been taken into account. The results suggest bod ily shame may act as a mediator between early abuse and bulimia, but t his requires further confirmation in a longitudinal study.