Personality features differentiate late adolescent females and males with chronic bulimic symptoms.

OBJECTIVE The authors examined gender differences in bulimia-related personality variables among late adolescents with chronic bulimic symptoms. METHOD Ninety-seven females and 14 males were included in the study. They participated in surveys in 1982, and again in 1992, and at each session reported elevated bulimic symptoms. Each respondent completed subscales of the Eating Disorders Inventory (Bulimia, Drive for Thinness, Perfectionism, and Interpersonal Distrust). RESULTS Even compared to males with similar levels of chronic bulimic symptoms, females with chronic bulimic symptoms reported more drive for thinness; compared to females with chronic bulimic symptoms, males with chronic bulimic symptoms reported more perfectionism and interpersonal distrust. DISCUSSION Late adolescent males and females with chronic bulimic symptoms can be distinguished on the basis of personality features. These findings have implications for theory, as well as for clinical assessment and therapeutics.