Cognitive explanations for AN
- Created by: Lishamxrie
- Created on: 19-01-19 14:27
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- Psychological explanations for anorexia (cognitive)
- Cognitive distortions are a cause of An
- Distrted image of ones body is central to the diagnosis of AN in the DSM-5
- Those with AN filter experiences of life through three factors
- 1. Disturbed perceptions (DP) about body shape and weight
- Murphy: argued that the main clinical features of AN stem from DP
- Create preoccupations with thoughts about food, eating and body shape
- Leads to behaviours such as food restriction
- Misinterpretation of emotional signals as a sign of becoming fat, even though they are getting skinnier
- Overestimation of body size and weight
- Williamson asked AN patients and a healthy control group to estimate their current and ideal body sizes
- AN patients estimates were significantly less accurate and tended to overestimate their size
- AN patients ideal bodies were significantly thinner then the control groups
- Williamson asked AN patients and a healthy control group to estimate their current and ideal body sizes
- Murphy: argued that the main clinical features of AN stem from DP
- 2. irrational beliefs defy logic
- Beck: Attitudes about AN that do not make sense and they give rise to automatic negative thoughts
- 'If I don't control my weight, I am worthless' (ALL OR NOTHING THINKING)
- ''I ate half a biscuit, I have no willpower' (CATASTROPHISING)
- Perfectionism is a key irrational belief in AN
- A person who exhibits perfectionism will...
- feels as if they must meet demanding standards in all aspects of life, especially in eating behaviours
- Uses intensive record keeping to ensure that they reach their goal
- Raise standards higher once targets are reached- forever pushing unrealistic goals and ending up in a cycle
- A person who exhibits perfectionism will...
- Beck: Attitudes about AN that do not make sense and they give rise to automatic negative thoughts
- 3. Cognitive inflexibility
- AN patients have problems fluently switching between task requiring a different set of cognitive skills
- Set shifting
- Apply the same skills in a different situation where they are no longer useful
- Treasure and Schmidt: cognitive interpersonal maintenance model
- when a valunrable person begins weight loss process, they rigidly persist and continue to perceive themselves as needing to loose weight
- They cannot think to an adaptive way of thinking about body size
- Weight loss is a solution to a problem that no longer exists, but they cant perceive this accurately
- They cannot think to an adaptive way of thinking about body size
- when a valunrable person begins weight loss process, they rigidly persist and continue to perceive themselves as needing to loose weight
- AN patients have problems fluently switching between task requiring a different set of cognitive skills
- 1. Disturbed perceptions (DP) about body shape and weight
- Evaluation
- Weaknesses
- Contradictory research
- A psychologist found no significant differences between AN patients and healthy women in estimating their own body size
- Distortions and irrational beliefs may not cause AN
- Shott: found tounger patients with AN were no worse at set-shifting than the healthy controls, but the older patients were
- It is instead a consequence of the disorder
- Shott: found tounger patients with AN were no worse at set-shifting than the healthy controls, but the older patients were
- Contradictory research
- Strengths
- Support for perfectionism (Halmi)
- found that perfectionism in childhood was a significant predictor of later development of AN in 728 women aged over 16
- Suggests it is a casual risk factor
- found that perfectionism in childhood was a significant predictor of later development of AN in 728 women aged over 16
- Support for cognitive distortions (Sachdev)
- scanned AN patients brains and found less activation (compared to the control group) in areas involving attention when Pp viewed images of their own body
- No difference in activation when seeing someone elses body
- Distortions only linked to your own body
- No difference in activation when seeing someone elses body
- scanned AN patients brains and found less activation (compared to the control group) in areas involving attention when Pp viewed images of their own body
- Support for perfectionism (Halmi)
- Weaknesses
- Cognitive distortions are a cause of An
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