An Investigation of Identity in Anorexia Nervosa Through Body Image Disturbance

<p dir="ltr">Anorexia nervosa (AN) is a psychiatric disorder which holds one of the highest premature mortality rates of any mental illness and has relapse rates of up to 40% in first year after treatment. Treatment outcomes may be ameliorated by improving our understanding of the underlying factors of the disorder. Identity, defined as the conscious awareness of oneself as a person involving feelings of coherence and uniqueness from others, is a central psychological construct which may represent one of these underlying factors in AN. Theoretical frameworks of AN often cite identity as a fundamental element of the disorder, suggesting identity disturbance to be connected to the development and maintenance of the illness through mechanisms such as body image disturbance (BID). Yet, despite these assertions, research on the potential link between identity, BID, and AN remains relatively scarce. As such, the current thesis investigated the role of identity disturbance and BID in AN. Collectively, the findings of this research suggest that both identity disturbance and BID may play crucial roles in the disorder, and may be linked to the maintenance of and recovery from the illness. The findings of this thesis have key implications for our understanding of AN.</p>