Social reward and social punishment sensitivity in relation to dietary restraint and binge/purge symptoms

Attachment style to body dissatisfaction, restrained eating, and disordered eating in adolescent girls: Differential weight communication mediators

Body dissatisfaction and eating behaviors are disproportionately elevated amongst adolescent girls. Family relationships represent a context in which adolescent girls' body image issues emerge. Thus, we integrated attachment and confirmation theories to examine whether weight related supportive messages (i.e., acceptance and challenge) mediated the relationship between attachment style (i.e., anxiety and avoidance) and body image outcomes (i.e., body dissatisfaction (BD), restrained eating (RE), and disordered eating (DE)). Acceptance refers to weight related support that is characterized by warmth and accepting messages; challenge refers to weight related support that is characterized by instrumental assistance and problem-solving messages. A sample of 106 adolescent girls, ages 11 to 21, completed self-report measures on attachment (Relationship Structures Questionnaire), acceptance and challenge (weight related Parental Behavior Questionnaire), body dissatisfaction (Eating Disorders Inventory), and eating behaviors (Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire; Eating Disorder Diagnostic Scale). Attachment anxiety directly related to all body image outcomes, whereas attachment avoidance only directly related to RE. Attachment avoidance only related to BD and DE indirectly through perceived acceptance. Those with high anxiety endorsed lower perceived challenge, whereas avoidant individuals endorsed lower perceived acceptance and challenge. We concluded that attachment dimension characteristics to be either hyperactivated regarding relationships (i.e., anxiety), or deactivated and distant (i.e., avoidance), are associated with how individuals perceive support, and in turn, are related to body image and eating behavior outcomes. Further, we clarify the differential roles of acceptance and challenge. Although both supportive, acceptance encompasses a layer of warmth that is more meaningful in body image, particularly for avoidantly attached individuals. By integrating qualities of attachment and supportive weight communication, we reveal that potential pathways of attachment to body image and eating behaviors.

Conditional effects of state fear of negative evaluation on restrictive eating behaviors

Fear of being evaluated negatively by others is a risk factor for the development of disordered eating. Specifically, trait level fear of negative evaluation (FNE) predicts disordered eating severity above other social anxiety traits. However, it remains unclear how state levels of this fear may impact eating behavior. The current study aimed to examine this risk factor in the context of state-level eating behavior. We hypothesized that: (a) elevated levels of state FNE would enhance the relationship between restraint and restriction and (b) we sought to explore the predictive nature of high trait FNE on restriction. Study procedures for N = 64 undergraduate students included assessment of dietary restraint, fear of negative evaluation, and hypothetical meal choice in the context of several proposed social and non-social settings. Results indicated that higher state FNE was related to more restrictive food choice across settings, and levels of trait FNE were not related to food choices. State FNE did not enhance the relationship between restraint and restriction. This project sought to examine the degree to which fear of negative evaluation impacts the relationship between dietary restraint and restriction, testing a unique risk factor for the development of eating psychopathology.

Reinforcement sensitivity and bulimia symptoms: the role of emotion regulation

OBJECTIVE

Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory (RST) provides a theoretical foundation associated with various approach and avoidance behaviors and individual personality differences. Sensitivity to reward and punishment, two neural systems within the RST have been significantly associated with bingeing and purging behaviors. However, inconsistent findings are observed and specific factors mediating these relationships are not well understood. Deficits in emotion regulation may account for these relationships, as both negative urgency and distress tolerance have been independently associated with bulimia behaviors. Thus, this is an area that requires further investigation.

METHOD

The current study utilized various self-report inventories, including the Eating Disorder Inventory-3rd Edition to measure bulimia symptoms, as well as measures of negative affect, sensitivity to reward and punishment, distress tolerance, and negative urgency. These measures were used to assess whether distress tolerance and negative urgency mediated associations between sensitivity to reward and punishment and bulimia symptoms in a community sample of 394 young adults ranging from the ages of 18 to 25.

RESULTS

As expected, sensitivity to reward and punishment were significantly associated with decreased distress tolerance. Distress tolerance was also directly associated with greater negative urgency, which was significantly associated with increased bulimia symptoms. Consistent with hypotheses, indirect associations between sensitivity to reward and sensitivity to punishment to bulimia symptoms via distress tolerance and negative urgency were observed, controlling for gender and negative affect.

DISCUSSION

Results contribute to understanding specific contributions of risk factors within the relationship of sensitivity to reward and punishment and bulimia symptoms, measured by the EDI-3. Novel to existing literature, results indicate that reinforcement sensitivity significantly contributes to emotion regulation deficits. Thus, these findings may have important implications for understanding the development and treatment of bulimia symptoms.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

Level V, based on descriptive, cross-sectional data.

Dialectical Thinking Is Linked With Smaller Left Nucleus Accumbens and Right Amygdala

Our current work examined the interface between thinking style and emotional experience at both the behavioral and neuropsychological levels. Thirty-nine Chinese participants completed the triad task, and we calculated the rate of individually selected relationship pairings to overall selections to represent their holistic thinking tendencies. In addition, participants in the top one-third of the ratio score were classified into the high holistic thinking group, while those in the bottom one-third of the ratio score were classified into the low holistic thinking group. We used the sensitivity to punishment and sensitivity to reward questionnaire (SPSRQ) to examine how people elicit positive and negative affective behaviors. Additionally, we examined the volume of the amygdala and nucleus accumbens and their functional connectivity in the resting-state. We found that high holistic thinkers were much less sensitive to rewards than low holistic thinkers. In other words, individuals with high holistic thinking are less likely to pursue behaviors that have positive emotional outcomes. Furthermore, their bilateral nucleus accumbens and right amygdala volumes were smaller than those of low holistic thinkers. Hierarchical regression analysis showed that holistic thinking tendency can negatively predict the volume of the left nucleus accumbens and right amygdala. Finally, resting-state functional connectivity results showed increased functional connectivity FC between left nucleus accumbens and bilateral amygdala in high holistic thinkers. These findings provide emotion-related manifestations of thinking styles at the behavioral and neural levels.

Atypical social reward anticipation as a transdiagnostic characteristic of psychopathology: A meta-analytic review and critical evaluation of current evidence

Several psychopathologies (e.g. schizophrenia spectrum conditions, autism spectrum disorders) are characterised by atypical interpersonal and social behaviour, and there is increasing evidence to suggest this atypical social behaviour is related to adjusted behavioural and neural anticipation of social rewards. This review brings together social reward anticipation research in psychopathology (k = 42) and examines the extent to which atypical social reward anticipation is a transdiagnostic characteristic. Meta-analyses of anticipatory reaction times revealed that, in comparison to healthy controls, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, autism spectrum disorder, and schizophrenia spectrum conditions are associated with significantly reduced behavioural anticipation of social rewards. The pooled meta-analysis of anticipatory reaction times found that the full clinical sample demonstrated significant social reward hypoanticipation in comparison to the healthy control group with a medium effect size. A narrative synthesis of meta-analytically ineligible behavioural data, self-report data, and neuroimaging studies complemented the results of the meta-analysis, but also indicated that bipolar disorder, eating disorders, and sexual addiction disorders may be associated with social reward hyperanticipation. The evaluation of existing evidence suggests that future research should better account for factors that affect reward anticipation (e.g. gender, psychotropic medication) and highlights the importance of using stimuli other than happy faces as social rewards.

Mapping and Predicting Patterns of Chinese Adolescents' Food Preferences

This study aimed to examine the patterns of, as well as the predictors for, Chinese adolescents’ food preferences. Using the national data of the China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS), we analyzed the data of 697 adolescents in the age range of 12 to 17 years. Latent class analysis revealed four types of food preferences: varied diet (37.09%, n = 254), avoiding vegetables (19.69%, n = 131), low appetite (7.56%, n = 50), and healthy diet (35.66%, n = 222). Major predictors for food preferences included demographic variables (e.g., gender, urban versus rural residence), nutrition knowledge, preference for activities, and social attitudes. Results did not show any significant differences in BMI z-scores among the four latent classes. However, there were significant differences in the number of sleeping hours among the classes.