Term of Award

Spring 2024

Degree Name

Master of Science in Experimental Psychology (M.S.)

Document Type and Release Option

Thesis (open access)

Copyright Statement / License for Reuse

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Department

Department of Psychology

Committee Chair

Nicolette Rickert

Committee Member 1

Wendy Wolfe

Committee Member 2

Karen Naufel

Abstract

Disordered eating behavior encompasses a spectrum of maladaptive eating patterns, including emotional eating, binging, restricting, and other similar behaviors. Perceived stress is the extent that an individual perceives their demands exceed their ability to cope. Existing research has demonstrated a positive relation between high ratings of perceived stress and disordered eating behaviors (King et al., 2009; Skead et al., 2018). The current study aimed to expand this research by examining the relation between disordered eating and stress in students, workers, and those who partake in both commitments. Utilizing a single survey, participants completed assessments including the Perceived Stress Scale, the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire, and the Three-Factor Eating Questionnaire. The current study hypothesized that perceived stress would mediate the relation between group status (i.e., student, worker, or student-worker) and disordered eating behavior. PROCESS macro mediation analyses were conducted, and results indicated there was an indirect connection from group status to disordered eating behavior via stress. No direct connection from group status to disordered eating was found. Future directions for research and practice are discussed.

OCLC Number

1436426245

Research Data and Supplementary Material

No

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