Attachment processes in eating disorder and depression

Abstract

This study examines the relationship between attachment strategies and symptom reporting among college women. Sixty-one college women were selected who reported high or low levels of depressive and eating disorder symptoms. The Adult Attachment Interview (AAI) was administered, and interview transcripts were rated with the Attachment Interview Q-Sort. The results indicated that women with hyperactivating AAI strategies were prone to reporting elevated levels of depressive symptoms, whereas women with deactivating strategies were prone to reporting elevated levels of eating-disorder symptoms, when depression was statistically controlled. These findings support the hypothesis that secondary or defensive attachment strategies predispose individuals toward different forms of symptom expression.