Eating Disorder Prevention Programs

NCT ID: NCT00042185

Last Updated: 2013-09-27

Study Results

Results pending

The study team has not published outcome measurements, participant flow, or safety data for this trial yet. Check back later for updates.

Basic Information

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Recruitment Status

COMPLETED

Clinical Phase

NA

Total Enrollment

450 participants

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2001-02-28

Study Completion Date

2007-05-31

Brief Summary

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This study evaluated 2 eating disorder prevention programs designed to increase body satisfaction among adolescent females with body image concerns.

Detailed Description

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Adolescent girls with body dissatisfaction (N=481; SD=1.4) were randomized to a dissonance-based thin-ideal internalization reduction program, healthy weight control program, expressive-writing control condition, or assessment-only control condition. Dissonance participants showed significantly greater decreases in thin-ideal internalization, body dissatisfaction, negative affect, eating disorder symptoms, and psychosocial impairment, and lower risk for eating pathology onset through 2-3 year follow-up than assessment-only controls. Dissonance participants showed greater decreases in thin-ideal internalization, body dissatisfaction, and psychosocial impairment than expressive-writing controls. Healthy weight participants showed greater decreases in thin-ideal internalization, body dissatisfaction, negative affect, eating disorder symptoms, and psychosocial impairment, less increases in weight, and lower risk for eating pathology and obesity onset through 2-3 year follow-up than assessment-only controls. Healthy weight participants showed greater decreases in thin-ideal internalization and weight than expressive writing controls. Dissonance participants showed a 60% reduction in risk for eating pathology onset and healthy weight participants showed a 61% reduction in risk for eating pathology onset and a 55% reduction in risk for obesity onset relative to assessment-only controls through 3-year follow-up, implying that the effects are clinically important and enduring.

Conditions

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Eating Disorders

Keywords

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Adolescence Prevention and Control Bulimia

Study Design

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Allocation Method

RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

PARALLEL

Primary Study Purpose

PREVENTION

Blinding Strategy

NONE

Study Groups

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Dissonance intervention

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Dissonance Eating Disorder Prevention Program

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

In this intervention, participants voluntarily engaged in verbal, written, and behavioral exercises in which they critiqued the thin-ideal ideal. These exercises were conducted in sessions and in homework activities. For example, they wrote a counter-attitudinal essay about the costs associated with pursuit of the thin-ideal and engaged in a counter-attitudinal role-play in which they attempted to dissuade facilitators from pursuing the thin-ideal.

Healthy Weight Intervention

Group Type ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

Healthy Weight Intervention

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

In this intervention, participants were encouraged to make gradual healthy and lasting changes to their diet and physical activity to balance their energy needs with their energy intake, and thereby achieve a healthier weight and body satisfaction. With support from the facilitator and group members, they initiated an individual lifestyle change plan to reduce intake of fat and sugar and to increase exercise using behavioral modification principles. Food and exercise diaries were used to identify behaviors to target in this lifestyle modification and to monitor change. Motivational enhancement activities were used to promote motivation for behavior change.

Expressive writing control intervention

Group Type ACTIVE_COMPARATOR

Expressive Writing Control Condition

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

In this condition, which is based on the work of Pennebaker (1997), participants wrote about emotionally significant topics in three individual weekly 45-minute sessions. They were told that research indicates that body dissatisfaction is linked to emotional issues and that expressive writing helps resolve these issues. Sample topics included relationships or goals. They were told that their work would not be read and were asked to write continuously for the duration of the session about an emotionally important topic.

Assessment-only control condition

Group Type NO_INTERVENTION

No interventions assigned to this group

Interventions

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Dissonance Eating Disorder Prevention Program

In this intervention, participants voluntarily engaged in verbal, written, and behavioral exercises in which they critiqued the thin-ideal ideal. These exercises were conducted in sessions and in homework activities. For example, they wrote a counter-attitudinal essay about the costs associated with pursuit of the thin-ideal and engaged in a counter-attitudinal role-play in which they attempted to dissuade facilitators from pursuing the thin-ideal.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Healthy Weight Intervention

In this intervention, participants were encouraged to make gradual healthy and lasting changes to their diet and physical activity to balance their energy needs with their energy intake, and thereby achieve a healthier weight and body satisfaction. With support from the facilitator and group members, they initiated an individual lifestyle change plan to reduce intake of fat and sugar and to increase exercise using behavioral modification principles. Food and exercise diaries were used to identify behaviors to target in this lifestyle modification and to monitor change. Motivational enhancement activities were used to promote motivation for behavior change.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Expressive Writing Control Condition

In this condition, which is based on the work of Pennebaker (1997), participants wrote about emotionally significant topics in three individual weekly 45-minute sessions. They were told that research indicates that body dissatisfaction is linked to emotional issues and that expressive writing helps resolve these issues. Sample topics included relationships or goals. They were told that their work would not be read and were asked to write continuously for the duration of the session about an emotionally important topic.

Intervention Type BEHAVIORAL

Eligibility Criteria

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Inclusion Criteria

* Self-reported body image concerns
Minimum Eligible Age

14 Years

Maximum Eligible Age

19 Years

Eligible Sex

FEMALE

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Sponsors

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National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)

NIH

Sponsor Role collaborator

University of Texas at Austin

OTHER

Sponsor Role lead

Locations

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University of Texas at Austin

Austin, Texas, United States

Site Status

Countries

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United States

References

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Stice E, Shaw H. Eating disorder prevention programs: a meta-analytic review. Psychol Bull. 2004 Mar;130(2):206-27. doi: 10.1037/0033-2909.130.2.206.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 14979770 (View on PubMed)

Stice E, Fisher M, Martinez E. Eating disorder diagnostic scale: additional evidence of reliability and validity. Psychol Assess. 2004 Mar;16(1):60-71. doi: 10.1037/1040-3590.16.1.60.

Reference Type BACKGROUND
PMID: 15023093 (View on PubMed)

Other Identifiers

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R01MH061957

Identifier Type: NIH

Identifier Source: secondary_id

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DSIR 84-CTP

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: secondary_id

R01MH061957

Identifier Type: NIH

Identifier Source: org_study_id

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