IngentaConnect EDI results of Japanese and German women and possible sociocultur...

Authors: Kusano-Schwarz, Mihoko; Wietersheim, Jörn von¹

Source: European Eating Disorders Review, Volume 13, Number 6, November 2005 , pp. 411-416(6)

Abstract:

The goal of this study was to compare data for women with bulimia nervosa and for a healthy control group both in Japan and Germany. These data were obtained using the Eating Disorder Inventory (EDI-2). In Germany, EDI-2 data and BMI values were collected from 102 nurses in training, 57 female medical students, and 29 patients with bulimia nervosa. In Japan, data were gathered from 243 female ‘short college’ students and 20 patients with bulimia nervosa. The Japanese non-clinical control group showed significantly higher values on nearly all EDI scales than the German control group. They had a markedly higher drive for thinness, though their BMI values were lower. When the German and the Japanese bulimia nervosa patients were compared, the Japanese patients also showed higher values than their German counterparts on three EDI scales, but these differences were negligible. It is suggested that sociocultural factors in Japan, in particular a significant dependency on social norms, may contribute to the high EDI values. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and Eating Disorders Association.

Keywords: eating behaviour; eating disorders; bulimia nervosa; cross-cultural comparison; female roles

Document Type: Research article

DOI: 10.1002/erv.590

Affiliations: 1: Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University of Ulm, Germany

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EDI results of Japanese and German women and possible sociocultural explanations