Maladaptive Cognitive Schemas as Predictors of Disordered Eating: Examining the Indirect Pathway through Emotion Regulation Difficulties

Sarah Gerges, Souheil Hallit, Diana Malaeb () and Sahar Obeid
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Sarah Gerges: School of Medicine and Medical Sciences, Holy Spirit University of Kaslik, Jounieh P.O. Box 446, Lebanon
Souheil Hallit: School of Medicine and Medical Sciences, Holy Spirit University of Kaslik, Jounieh P.O. Box 446, Lebanon
Diana Malaeb: College of Pharmacy, Gulf Medical University, Ajman 20550, United Arab Emirates
Sahar Obeid: Social and Education Sciences Department, School of Arts and Sciences, Lebanese American University, Jbeil 1401, Lebanon

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 18, 1-15

Abstract: A scarcity of research has looked into the association of maladaptive core beliefs with dysfunctional eating patterns. Moreover, no prior study has considered the potential role of difficulties in negative emotion regulation when disentangling the complex correlations between early maladaptive schemas and disturbed eating habits. Our study aimed at exploring the distinct relationships between early maladaptive schemas and disordered eating, while investigating the indirect role of emotion regulation difficulties within these associations. We collected data from 982 Lebanese young adults (18–30 years old), distributed across the five Lebanese governorates, who completed the Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-26), the Young Schema Questionnaire—Short Form 3 (YSQ-SF3), and the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale—16 Item Version (DERS-16). The results showed that the disconnection and rejection schema domain, under which the early maladaptive schema of mistrust was the most predictive of disordered/inappropriate eating attitudes. All the remaining maladaptive schema domains (i.e., the impaired autonomy/performance, impaired limits, other-directedness, and overvigilance/inhibition schema domains) exerted significant indirect effects on disordered eating attitudes through difficulties in emotion regulation. Our findings gave prominence to a potential intrinsic mechanism through which maladaptive cognitive schemas are linked to disordered eating behaviors, emphasizing the role of emotion dysregulation as a cardinal actor within this model. They sustain the surmise that cognitively and emotionally vulnerable individuals exhibit stronger propensities for inappropriate dietary patterns, as a means to offset their inner weakness. This study broadens the medical community’s insights into the underpinning processes behind eating disorder psychopathology and could therefore make a step towards the adoption of innovative therapeutic approaches that promote emotion regulation skills in the context of schema therapy.

Keywords: eating attitudes; inappropriate eating; dysfunctional cognitions; early maladaptive schemas; maladaptive core beliefs; emotion regulation; emotion dysregulation; young adults (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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