Objective: Based on the personality model outlined by Robert C. Cloninger, studies in adult patient samples demonstrated that according to distinct personality profiles patients with anorexia nervosa could be differentiated from those with bulimia nervosa, as well as from healthy controls. The current study examines whether these personality-related differences also exist in adolescent patients with eating disorders and a short duration of illness.
Method: The sample studied consists of 73 consecutively admitted female patients aged 12 to 18 years, with eating disorders. The German version of the Junior Temperament and Character Inventory (JTCI) was administered to 29 patients with anorexia nervosa, restricting type (AN-R), to 16 patients with anorexia nervosa, binge-eating/purging type (AN-B), and to 28 patients with bulimia nervosa (BN).
Results: Different temperamental factors were most pronounced between AN-R and BN patients, whereas AN-B patients exhibited a personality profile between those of AN-R and BN. BN patients scored higher on Novelty Seeking but lower on Persistence than AN-R patients. In contrast to AN-R patients, both BN and AN-B patients scored lower on Self-Directedness.
Conclusions: The current results of differential temperamental dimensions in adolescent patients with eating disorders tended to be similar to findings for adult patients, which strengthens the assumption that distinct personality factors underlie the different subtypes of eating disorders.