An MMPI analysis of similarities and differences in three classifications of eating disorders: Anorexia nervosa, bulimia, and morbid obesity

While considerable clinical literature exists on the personality characteristics of the different classifications of eating disorders, standardized psychometric measures have not often been utilized to compare the various disorders with each other. The present investigation employed the MMPI to study the similarities and differences of the mean profiles of 30 hospitalized anorexic patients, 30 hospitalized bulimic patients, 30 morbidly obese outpatients, and 30 subjects in a matched control group. The results indicated that there was no significant difference in the overall profiles of the three experimental groups, but that all differed from the control group. Individual scale analysis demonstrated that the three experimental groups shared a core disturbance demonstrated by common elevations on scales 1 (Hs), 2 (D), and 4 (Pd). Differences on scales 6 (Pa), 7 (Pt), 8 (Sc), and 0 (Si) were discussed in terms of the specific manifestations of the core disturbance symptomatology.