Abstract

Maladaptive or dysfunctional cognitive factors are believed to be significant contributors to pathology in eating disorders. The emotional Stroop task was used to examine [the] these dysfunctional cognitive factors. A sample of 31 women (14 nonclinical controls, 13 BN, 4 AN) participated in this investigation, after exclusion for ocular and movement artifacts and equipment problems the remaining sample contained 4 women diagnosed with BN, 4 women diagnosed with AN, and 9 matched non-clinical control subjects. Participants completed an Emotional Stroop task comprised of 8 blocks of words. On each trial, a word was presented in one of four colors (black, blue, green, red) and participants were instructed to indicate the color of the word as quickly and accurately as possible using a multi-button response box. Word blocks were separated by a minute break in which participants were instructed to participate in a relaxation task to return physiologic responses to baseline. ERPs were recorded from three locations: Fz, Cz, and [and] Pz. Following the Stroop task, participants rated all words on dimensions of valence and arousal. Individuals with an eating disorder were found to be sensitive to stimuli depicting food and body information. Results of the psychophysiological data suggest different processing mechanisms for food and body stimuli [occuring] in individuals with AN and BN resulting in a similar behavioral presentation, delayed response times. These results support the need for further exploration of the information processing mechanisms underlying maladaptive cognitive processes in eating disorders.

LLU Discipline

General Psychology

School

Graduate Studies

First Advisor

Paul Haerich

Second Advisor

Jeffrey Mar

Third Advisor

Jason Owen

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Degree Level

M.A.

Year Degree Awarded

2008

Date (Title Page)

6-2008

Language

English

Library of Congress/MESH Subject Headings

Eating Disorders -- psychology; Psychometrics; Reaction Time; Eating Disorders -- etiology; Cognition, Classification; Neuropsychological Tests; Anorexia Nervosa -- diagnosis; Bulimia Nervosa -- diagnosis

Type

Thesis

Page Count

x; 131

Digital Format

PDF

Digital Publisher

Loma Linda University Libraries

Usage Rights

This title appears here courtesy of the author, who has granted Loma Linda University a limited, non-exclusive right to make this publication available to the public. The author retains all other copyrights.

Collection

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Collection Website

http://scholarsrepository.llu.edu/etd/

Repository

Loma Linda University. Del E. Webb Memorial Library. University Archives

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