IDENTIFICATION OF BINGE-PRONE WOMEN - AN EXPERIMENTALLY AND PSYCHOMETRICALLY VALIDATED CLUSTER-ANALYSIS IN A COLLEGE POPULATION

This study investigated the escape model of binge eating through a cluster analysis using standardized measures. A sample of 126 undergraduate women underwent a manipulation of their level of cognition and were asked to ''taste-test'' several flavors of ice cream. Questionnaire data from these women were entered into a cluster analysis. Two groups emerged: women in the ''binge-prone'' group were significantly more depressed, had lower self-esteem, had more chaotic and extreme eating patterns, and were more self-conscious than those in the control group. In validation work, binge-prone women were shown to report elevated levels of bulimic symptomatology and, when in the presence of a food they enjoyed, to respond to increases in level of cognition by eating more. These results were consistent with some, but not all, of the components of the escape model.