Coping in dieting and eating disorders - A population-based study

The use of different coping strategies, measured by the Ways of Coping Ques tionnaire was investigated among 1157 women (18 to 30 years), randomly sele cted from the general population of Sweden as part of a longitudinal study. Subjects were clustered into five groups: subjects with past or current ea ting disorders (ED), and subjects with no ED but with past, current, or no history of dieting. Subjects with past or current ED reported significantly higher levels off escape avoidance and lower levels of seeking social supp ort and purposeful problem solving compared with subjects with neither ED n or dieting. These group comparisons were then reanalyzed with sum of depres sive symptoms as a covariate in covariate analyses. The only significant di fference between the groups concerned the use of escape avoidance. The sign ificant differences in the use of escape-avoidance strategies may motivate more extensive training in coping in the context of prevention and treatmen t of ED and maladaptive dieting.