Detecting Eating Psychopathology in Female Athletes by Asking About Exercise: Use of the Compulsive Exercise Test

The present study assessed the suitability of the Compulsive Exercise Test (athlete version; CET‐A) for identifying female athletes with clinically significant features related to or comparable with eating psychopathology. Three hundred and sixty‐one female athletes (including 12 with a clinically diagnosed eating disorder) completed the Eating Disorders Examination Questionnaire and the CET‐A. Receiver operating curve analysis was employed to identify a cut‐off value on the CET‐A, which could indicate clinically significant features related to or comparable with eating psychopathology among female athletes. The analysis demonstrated that a CET‐A score of 10 successfully discriminated female athletes with a current eating disorder. The results suggest that the CET‐A may be a suitable tool for detecting eating psychopathology in female athletes. Additional longitudinal research is needed to evaluate the predictive value of the CET‐A. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and Eating Disorders Association.