(PS8-A13) A Network Analysis of Disordered Eating Behaviors and Psychosocial Correlates in College Females

Disordered eating behaviors exist on a spectrum (e.g., dietary restraint, binge eating, purging), and these behaviors can co-occur, leading to potential increases in the severity of eating pathology. In recent years, network analysis (a statistical technique that allows for the symptom-level conceptualization of psychopathology) has been used to examine associations among cognitive and behavioral disordered eating symptoms in clinical populations. Many psychosocial correlates (e.g., body dissatisfaction) have been implicated cross-sectionally and longitudinally in the etiology and maintenance of disordered eating behaviors; however, these constructs have yet to be included in network analyses among non-clinical populations. The current study used network analysis to identify central correlates that are associated with the spectrum of disordered eating in female college students, a high-risk population for disordered eating behaviors. A total of 484 female college students (64.0% White; 23.4% Hispanic/Latinx; M_BMI = 24.18) completed measures assessing disordered eating behaviors and body dissatisfaction (EPSI), emotion dysregulation (DERS-16), interoceptive deficits (BAQ; BRQ), interpersonal difficulties (IIP-32), and impulsivity (Short UPPS-P). A Gaussian graphical model was estimated from the data, and expected influence (EI) centrality and predictability values were computed to assess the importance of nodes in the network. The network was adequately stable. Consistent with network analyses using clinical samples, body dissatisfaction was most central to the spectrum of disordered eating behaviors (EI = 0.96) and was strongly associated with cognitive restraint, binge eating, and purging. A general mistrust of interoceptive signals (EI = 0.68) was strongly associated with body dissatisfaction. Impulsivity was associated with disordered eating behaviors indirectly through interoceptive deficits. Of note, lacking effective emotion regulation strategies was the most central correlate in the overall network (EI = 1.01), but was not directly associated with any of the disordered eating behaviors. Findings from the current study highlight the central role of body dissatisfaction and interoceptive deficits to disordered eating behaviors in female college students. Results support the continued inclusion of body dissatisfaction in cognitive-behavioral prevention and intervention efforts targeting disordered eating (e.g., Enhanced Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy) and provide evidence for the potential benefits of explicitly targeting interoceptive deficits, as these deficits may serve as a maintenance factor for engagement in disordered eating behavior.