Sex-role traits and self-monitoring as dimensions of control: women with bulimia nervosa vs. controls.

OBJECTIVE

The study investigated sex-role traits and self-monitoring styles as two dimensions of self-control amongst women with bulimia nervosa and normal controls.

DESIGN AND

METHODS

The participants were 30 women with bulimia nervosa and 40 normal controls who completed questionnaires, which assessed bulimic symptoms, sex-role traits, and Synder's Self-Monitoring Scale.

RESULTS

Women with bulimia nervosa were found to identify more strongly than controls with negative feminine traits and Other Directedness, a style of self-monitoring that focuses on pleasing others.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings reinforce the notion that women with bulimia nervosa lack assertiveness skills and that the strategies they have developed in their interactions with others can be described as a Negative Yielding style of self-control.