CARE coordinators present research on assessing eating disorders across gender and weight category, preferred body terminology for college students
CARE coordinators Anjali Sharma and Emily Like presented findings from their personal research projects at this year's Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies (ABCT) Convention in Philadelphia in November. Sharma's findings suggest that current eating disorder diagnostic measures don't successfully screen individuals of all genders. Like's work also illuminates the need for diagnosis measures to more accurately assess eating disorders across various groups, with a focus on individuals in a variety of weight categories. She also presented results on preferred body-related terminology for college students living in higher-weight bodies.
Upon their return to CARE headquarters at the University of Kansas, Sharma and Like reflect on the impact of their work and the experience of attending ABCT.
Anjali Sharma's Research
Assessing Eating Disorders Across Gender
"My research explored how the DSM-5-TR diagnostic criteria for eating disorders perform across gender. We accomplished that by investigating responses to a common self-report measure, the Eating Disorder Diagnostic Scale, which uses language from the DSM-5. We found evidence for bias across multiple symptoms, meaning that the criteria likely does not equitably assess eating disorders across gender.
"I’m glad to say ABCT 2024 was my very first academic conference! I learned a lot about different ways to investigate eating disorder symptoms from other researchers in the field. I also connected with researchers who focus more broadly on LGBTQ+ mental health. Their research gave me some great ideas for my own future projects!
"My favorite part of ABCT was meeting people for sure. I loved meeting with our collaborators at the CREST Lab at UNLV [University of Nevada Las Vegas] and forming new connections with folks in my area of interest!"
Emily Like's Research
Identifying Internalized Weight Bias and Preferred Body Terminology
"At ABCT, I shared the results of two research projects I’ve been working on. My first project focused on the Clinical Impairment Assessment (CIA), a tool used to measure clinical impairment secondary to eating disorders. I wanted to see if the CIA works the same way for people in different weight categories. To do this, I looked at overall CIA scores and ran several tests to see if the tool performed consistently across groups. I found that the CIA is partly consistent but also seems to measure other things, like weight stigma or internalized weight bias, for people in higher-weight bodies.
"My second poster and project examined which body-related terms college students in higher-weight bodies prefer and whether these preferences change based on their level of internalized weight bias. The results of this study revealed that people with low internalized weight bias preferred 'neutral' terms, while those with high internalized weight bias were more likely to identify with terms often seen as 'undesirable.'
"There were also differences in preferences, showing agreement on some terms but not others, highlighting the importance of looking at terminology on a more individual level. I hope these findings can be a starting point for future studies and help create recommendations for using body-related language that reduces weight stigma and encourages inclusivity.
"Outside of the opportunity to present my research, I really enjoyed trying new coffee shops, visiting the Philadelphia Museum of Art, learning about new novel research, and spending time with some of our CARE collaborators!"
Rising Research Stars
Sharma and Like have conducted their ground-breaking studies throughout their time in their postbaccalaureate positions with CARE. They both aim to continue their work as graduate students in Clinical Psychology progrmas.
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