OBJECTIVE: To examine the relationships between sexual violence experiences, inaccurate body weight perceptions, and the presence of eating disorder (ED) indicators in a sample of female US college students. PARTICIPANTS: 6,090 college females 25 years of age and younger.
METHODS: A secondary analysis of National College Health Assessment data gathered annually at one institution from 2004-2013 was utilized. A model predicting ED indicators was tested using logistic regression analyses with multiple categorical variables representing severity of sexual violence, accuracy of body weight perceptions and an interaction between the two.
RESULTS: Sexual violence and inaccurate body weight perception significantly predicted ED indicators; sexual violence was the strongest predictor of purging behavior while inaccurate body weight perception was best predicted by underweight status.
CONCLUSIONS: Findings provide support to the relationship between purging behavior and severity of sexual violence and also to the link between inaccurate body weight perception and being underweight.