THE CONCURRENT VALIDITY OF A CLASSIFICATION OF DIETERS WITH LOW VERSUS HIGH SUSCEPTIBILITY TOWARD FAILURE OF RESTRAINT

It has been experimentally shown that the population of high restraine d eaters consists of two subpopulations, i.e., those with a low and th ose with a high susceptibility toward failure of restraint. Only those who combined high restraint with high scores on the disinhibition sca le of the TFEQ (Three-Factor Eating Questionnaire) showed overeating a fter a preload. The aim of the present study was to assess the concurr ent validity of a two-factorial classification using the Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire (DEBQ) scales for restraint, emotional and exte rnal eating, as well as the bulimia scale of the Eating Disorder Inven tory (EDI) for locating dieters with low or high susceptibility toward failure. It was examined whether the resulting two-group classificati on is associated with self-reported behaviors and features of psychopa thology, which are generally thought to differentiate both groups of d ieters. The results indicated that the two-group classification was in deed associated with many of these behaviors and features of psychopat hology, It was concluded that this classification has a good concurren t validity. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd.