I’m angry that I’m not perfect! aggression mediates the relationship between perfectionism and eating pathology in men and women

Purpose The link between maladaptive perfectionism and eating disorder (ED) pathology is well-established, yet less is known about factors that contribute to this relationship. The current study examined the mediating effect of aggression on the relationship between maladaptive perfectionism and ED pathology in a mixed-gender sample. Methods Three-hundred and thirty-six participants (47.3% women) with a mean age of 35.75 (SD = 10.00) were recruited online through Amazon Mechanical Turk. Self-reported data were collected on ED pathology (Eating Disorder Examination-Questionnaire), perfectionism (Frost Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale), aggression (Buss–Perry Aggression Questionnaire), and demographic information. Results Mediation analyses were performed separately for men and women using the SPSS PROCESS macro (Hayes in Introduction to mediation, moderation, and conditional process analysis: a regression-based approach, Guilford Press, New York, 2018). To test gender differences for specific model parameters, multiple-group structural equation modeling was used. Findings indicate that aggression partially mediated the relationship between maladaptive perfectionism and ED pathology in both men and women. There were no significant gender differences in the strength of the indirect effect or direct effect of perfectionism on ED pathology. Conclusions Findings from this study suggest that aggression may partially account for the relationship between maladaptive perfectionism and ED pathology. Additional research is needed to determine the temporal sequence of maladaptive perfectionism and aggression as it relates to ED pathology. Nonetheless, given their interrelationships, treatment research may benefit from examining interventions targeting aggression as a potential avenue for reducing ED symptoms. Level of evidence Level V, cross-sectional study.