Maternal Psychological Control 1 Running head ...

Maternal Psychological Control 1

Running head: PSYCHOLOGICAL CONTROL, COMPETENCE, AND BULIMIA Maternal Psychological Control and Lowered Competence as Predictors of Bulimic Tendencies

in Adolescence: A Longitudinal Study

Nicole Godinez

University of Notre Dame


Abstract

Problematic eating behaviors, including bulimic tendencies, are rapidly increasing among

middle-school adolescent girls and boys. Prior research has indicated that both environmental

factors (e.g., parental control) and low levels of self-competence are related to such eating

disturbances. In the present study, we hypothesized and tested a longitudinal indirect effects

model in which high levels of maternal psychological control led to lowered adolescent

competence, which, in turn, predicted increased levels of subclinical bulimic symptoms. In order

to examine this model, self-report data was collected from 73 girls and 58 boys as they

progressed through 6th, 7th, and 8th grades. Separate models were tested for girls and boys, and

results of structural equation modeling procedures supported the hypothesis. Thus, this study

identifies a time-ordered process that emphasizes the significance of the mother–adolescent

relationship and the importance of targeting internalized feelings of low competence as a means

of preventing bulimia.

Keywords: ADOLESCENCE, PSYCHOLOGICAL CONTROL, COMPETENCE,

SUBCLINICAL BULIMIA, BOYS AND GIRLS


Maternal Psychological Control and Lowered Competence as Predictors of Bulimic Tendencies

in Adolescence: A Longitudinal Study

Problematic eating behaviors, including bulimic tendencies, are rapidly increasing among

adolescents, particularly during the middle school years (Eisele, Hertsgaard, & Light, 1986; U.S.

Department of Health and Human Services, 2000). In fact, bulimia is often thought of as an

adolescent disease, with a typical age range of 12 to 25 (Fitcher & Quadflieg, 1995; Woodside &

Garfinkel, 1992). In a sample of high school students, Gross and Rosen (1988) found that clinical

bulimia was identified with 9.6% of girls and 1.2% of boys; a later study found the prevalence

for clinically diagnosed bulimia to be 2.7% for girls aged 14-15 years and 0.3% for boys of the

same age (Patton, Selzer, Coffey, Carlin, & Wolfe, 1999). More recently, Berger, Schilke and

Strauss (2005) found that more than one third of female and more than 20% of male high schools

students indicated some form of impaired eating behavior, including subclinical bulimic

tendencies. Further, an estimated 12% to 44% of adolescents may, at some point during the

adolescent period, experience subclinical symptoms of bulimia (Stice, 2001; Stice, Killen,

Hayword, & Taylor, 1998). Given adolescents’ vulnerability to eating disturbances such as

bulimia, it is essential to understand the specific mechanisms underlying unhealthy eating

patterns in order to implement more successful prevention and intervention programs.

Additionally, due to the rising number of males suffering from bulimic symptoms, it is critical

that research focus on both genders. This study therefore examines the roles of some precursors

to eating disorders. In particular, the focus of this investigation was perceived maternal

psychological control and low self-competence levels in male and female adolescents.

Experts theorize that environmental factors play a particularly crucial role in the high

prevalence of eating disturbances such as bulimia among adolescents in western societies


(Binkley, Eales, & Jekanoski, 2000; Hill, Wyatt, Reed, & Peters, 2003). For example, Social

Cognitive Theory (SCT; for a review see Baranowski, Perry, & Parcel, 1997) posits that

adolescent eating patterns are influenced by a dynamic interaction between environmental

influences (e.g., social environments, especially one’s family setting), personal factors (e.g., self-

efficacy), and behavior (e.g., dieting and meal patterns). Similarly, ecological models suggest

that eating-related behaviors are impacted by one’s immediate social networks and the

interactions within these (for a review see Bronfenbrenner, 1979; Glanz & Rimer, 1995). These

theories inform the current study, because for the majority of teens who live at home, parents

notably affect their environment through everyday interactions and behaviors (Compas, Davis,

Forsythe, & Wagner, 1987), including serving as food-providers and shaping food attitudes,

preferences, and values (Story, Neumark-Sztainer, & French, 2002). In fact, data from the

National Continuing Survey of Food Intake of Individuals revealed that adolescents eat 68% of

their meals and 78% of their snacks at home, indicating that home is the main location of food

intake, and therefore suggesting that parents may have the greatest influence on food choice and

amount (Lin, Guthrie, & Frazao, 1999). More broadly speaking, parenting style may influence

the development of eating disturbances among adolescents (e.g., Minuchin, Rosman, & Baker,

1978; Bowen, 1978; Bruch, 1985). For example, male and female 10th-through 12th-grade

students who were at risk for developing an eating disorder also reported higher perceived family

conflict and lower perceived independence (Felker & Stivers, 1994).

Despite theoretical and empirical support suggesting a direct link between negative

parental influences and adolescent eating, it is likely that this connection is influenced by

personal factors, such as adolescent internalizing problems. Scholars have attempted to explain

the link between problems in the parent-adolescent relationship (e.g., mothers’ use of


psychological control) and maladaptive eating behaviors (e.g., bingeing and purging) by positing

that eating behaviors may serve as a form of coping with internalized distress brought forth by

poor parenting (Connors, 1996; Blodgett Salafia, Gondoli, Corning, McEnery, & Grundy, 2007).

On the basis of Costanzo and Woody’s (1985) suggestion that parents’ intrusive psychological

control may interrupt the child’s individuation process and transmit anxiety to the child by

limiting their opportunities for self-discovery, Barber (1992) theorizes that psychologically over-

controlled children might lack the confidence to deal with the external world. As a result, they

tend to withdraw and are at greater risk for internalizing problems including low self-

competence. Research has supported this theoretical explanation with evidence that both

adolescents’ difficulties with parents and their negative self-appraisals play an important role in

their development of maladaptive eating behaviors (for a review, see Connors, 1996; also see

Polivy & Herman, 2002). The constructs of parenting and competence, as well as their respective

influences on the occurrence of eating disturbances among adolescents, will be further explored

in the following sections and will form the basis for the current study.

Parenting and Competence

Parental psychological control is defined as “attempts that inhibit or interfere with

children’s development of independence and self-direction by keeping the child emotionally

dependent on the parent” (Petit, Laird, Dodge, Bates, & Criss, 2001, p. 584). Generally, studies

suggest that relations exist between parental psychological control and reduced feelings of

competence (Lakshmi & Arora, 2006; McDowell & Parke, 2000). For instance, Baumrind (1967;

1971) found that children of authoritarian parents, (e.g., those high in psychological control and,

consequently, low in autonomy support) were less self-reliant and independent as well as more

withdrawn and discontent than children whose parents did not practice psychological control. In


contrast, studies indicate that parental support of the child’s autonomy is related to the child’s

lowered internalizing difficulties and increased competence (deCharms, 1976; Deci, Nezlek, &

Sheinman, 1981). First, Blodgett Salafia et al. (2007) found that maternal promotion of

adolescents’ autonomy was significantly associated with lower levels of depression and anxiety

among adolescents in middle school. Second, Ryan and Grolnick (1986) found that children who

experienced more parental autonomy support showed greater intrinsic motivation and perceived

competence. Third, these researchers discovered that parental autonomy support was consistently

related both to children’s self-perceived competence and teacher-rated competence of the child

(Grolnick & Ryan, 1989).

Parental psychological control is especially detrimental to adolescents’ competence,

because normal development requires that they have sufficient freedom to establish an

independent sense of identity, while still maintaining a connection to their parents (Steinberg,

1990). Regarding attachment theory, Bowlby (1982; 1969) posited that adolescents within a

proper autonomy-supporting and caregiving system tend to distance themselves from parents in

order to independently investigate their surrounding environment. This exploration system

allows adolescents to develop self-regulation and “learn that they can be in the world alone and

do new things without others’ help” (Mikulincer, Shaver, & Pereg, 2003). Thus, parental support

of autonomy essentially allows adolescents to practice co-regulation of distress, such that they

are able to confidently face tasks and trials on their own while seeking support from parents

during life transitions or particularly traumatic experiences. Using Bolby’s framework,

Mikulincer et al. (2003) went on to conjecture that when deprived of this system (e.g., those with

parents who employ high levels of psychological control), adolescents show deficits in

expansion of self and the development of self-regulation. Similarly, deprivation of an autonomy-


supported system increases adolescents’ sense of helplessness and contributes to the

implementation of “hyperactivating strategies” or, in other words, attempts at regulating the

distress without the help of an attachment figure (Mikulincer et al., 2003). In summary, parental

support of autonomy appears to be a protective factor for adolescents while psychological

control may put adolescents at higher risk for internalizing problems such as low self-

competence and, as the current study seeks to demonstrate, disordered eating tendencies such as

bulimia.

Competence and Bulimia

It has been theorized that maladaptive eating (e.g., bingeing, purging) may be a form of

coping with internalized distress or may reflect radical compensatory behaviors (for a review, see

Stice, 2002; also Connors, 1996). For example, adolescents may cope with psychological distress

by focusing their attention on body-related issues (Frederick & Grow, 1996), since physical

appearance often provides personal value, self-worth, and attainment of others’ attention and

praise (Littrell, Damhorst, & Littrell, 1990). In particular, internalized distress in the form of low

competence has long been considered a central component of cognitive-behavioral models of

bulimia. For instance, adolescents with low levels of competence tend to become preoccupied

with body-related issues and are, therefore, at higher risk for developing eating disorders such as

bulimia (Garner, Olmsted, & Polivy, 1983). Scholars argue that low competence increases

individuals’ likelihood of subscribing to culturally prescribed ideals of thinness as well as their

vulnerability to social pressures to be thin; thus, they are more likely to diet and to develop

symptoms of bulimia (Fairburn & Wilson, 1993; Stice, 1994; Striegel-Moore, McAvay, &

Rodin, 1986a). Further, Bandura’s (1977) self-efficacy theory posits that beliefs about one’s

abilities will affect emotional reactions and behaviors, suggesting that those with low


competence may be more likely to engage in negative thoughts. In turn, these negative thoughts

may directly lead to disturbed eating patterns by motivating an escape from discomfort through

binge eating (Heatherton & Baumeister, 1991) or by encouraging the “all-or-nothing” mentality,

involving the abandonment of diet and the tendency to overeat (Bardone, Perez, Abramson, &

Joiner, 2003). Similarly, adolescents with low competence may not have developed adequate

coping skills and, therefore, exhibit less appropriate responses to stress (Bardone et al., 2003),

increasing the probability that they will develop bulimic tendencies.

These theoretical models are supported by numerous empirical studies that have

established a link between low competence and bulimic behavior (French et al., 2001; Fryer,

Waller, & Kroese, 1997; Katzman & Wolchik, 1984; Shisslak, Pazda, & Crago, 1990). In fact,

low competence has been cited as one of the most consistent personality-related issues for

women with clinical eating disorders (Etringer, Altmaier, & Bowers, 1989; Frederick & Grow,

1996) as well as for those with subclinical disordered behaviors and attitudes (Mayhew &

Edelmann, 1989). For example, Katzman and Wolchik (1984) found that individuals with

bulimia had lower self-esteem than comparison groups who showed no symptoms of bulimia.

Additionally, Shisslak et al. (1990) reported that regardless of weight category (e.g.,

underweight, normal weight, overweight) women with bulimia exhibited lower self-esteem than

those in the same weight category who did not have bulimia. In a younger sample of female

adolescents between the ages of 12 and 14, girls with eating disorders had significantly lower

ratings of competence than a control group without eating disorders (Kirsh, McVey, Tweed, &

Katzman, 2007). Similarly, in a longitudinal study, Button, Sonuga-Barke, Davies, and

Thompson (1996) found a significant link between low self-esteem among 11-and 12-year-old

girls and eating disorder symptoms, including vomiting, five years later. Considered together,


these results suggest that adolescents’ competence is particularly influential in their development

of bulimic symptoms.

Parenting, Competence, and Bulimia

Limited literature exists regarding the longitudinal connections between all three

constructs of parental psychological control, levels of competence, and disordered eating.

However, cross-sectional studies lay solid groundwork for the current study. For example,

among late adolescent girls, Wheeler, Wintre, and Polivy (2003) found that disordered eating

was inversely related to perceptions of parent-child reciprocity and positively related to a

personal sense of incompetence. In a mediational analysis, Frederick and Grow (1996) found

evidence linking lowered parental autonomy support with young women’s deficits in self-

esteem, and lowered self-esteem with bulimic symptoms, body dissatisfaction, and drive for

thinness. However, the study by Frederick and Grow (1996) was limited in several ways. First,

the data used in the study were cross-sectional in nature, which can only be suggestive of a

developmental pattern but not indicative of time-ordered effects. Second, the sample included

only college women, failing to consider early adolescence – a developmental period with

particular vulnerability to disordered eating. Finally, the authors do not examine similar patterns

of relations in a sample of males, despite the increasing prevalence of disordered eating patterns

among males.

The Present Study

At present, large gaps exist in the literature concerning adolescent boys and maladaptive

eating. This likely has much to do with previous trends indicating that females may be more

prone to eating disorders (Lundholm & Anderson, 1986) as well as the common perception that

boys are more comfortable with their weight and feel less pressure than girls to be thin


(Hatmaker, 2005). However, current data indicate that male eating disturbances deserve and

necessitate attention. First, an estimated 35% of all those with a binge-related eating disorder are

male (National Institute of Mental Health, 2004; Spitzer et al., 1993). Second, Berger, Schilke

and Strauss (2005) found that over 20% of male students between 14 and 18 years of age

exhibited impaired eating behavior, and had a medium to high risk of developing a full-blown

eating disorder. Finally, a study from Boston Children’s Hospital determined that the course and

outcome of eating disorders are remarkably similar in adolescent boys as in adolescent girls

(Eliot & Baker, 2001). Various societal pressures – including increased media messages now

targeting boys and men (National Eating Disorders Association, 2002), the advantage of low

weight in certain sports (e.g., wrestling, running, and swimming) (Sundgot-Borgen & Torstveit,

2004), and the effects of increased heterosocial involvement and emerging sexuality (Carlat,

Carnago, & Hezrog, 1997) – encourage males to strive to achieve an unrealistic and perfect body

(Hatmaker, 2005). Research has also indicated that boys with bulimia tend to have poor body

image, mild depression, and mild social anxiety (Gross & Rosen, 1988). Thus, the present study

significantly contributes to the literature by investigating the processes involved in predicting

bulimic symptoms among adolescent males as well as females.

Numerous studies exist examining the separate relations between parental psychological

control, adolescents’ lowered competence, and bulimia. However, limited consideration has been

given to the interactions of these three constructs, and most of these studies have been cross-

sectional in nature (e.g., Frederick & Grow, 1996). Such studies lack the ability to examine the

specific time-ordered process wherein psychological control affects competence levels, which in

turn affects bulimic tendencies.


Hypothesis

Therefore, the purpose of this study is to test the hypothesis that for both male and female

adolescents, higher levels of perceived maternal psychological control in 6th grade will lead to

adolescents’ lowered self competence in 7th grade, which will in turn predict higher levels of

bulimic symptoms in 8th grade. This pattern of relations is indicative of a mediational chain

suggesting that lowered levels of competence will account for the relation between prior

maternal psychological control and subsequent bulimic symptoms.

Method

Participants

Contact letters were initially distributed by direct mailing to parents of 4th graders within

a school district in a medium-sized, Midwestern city. The letter briefly described the study and

instructed mothers of the 4th-graders to call our research office if interested in participating in the

study. Mothers were told that this was a study of maternal and child adjustment during the

transition to adolescence. In particular, mothers were told that they would be asked questions

about child development, maternal and child well-being, parenting, and family relations; eating

disorders were not specifically mentioned as foci of the study.

To ensure that mothers had the same degree of experience with parenting during the

adolescent transition, mother-child dyads were eligible if the 4th-grader was the oldest child in

the family (i.e., all families were making this transition for the first time in their ontogeny). In

addition, for the purpose of this study, dyads qualified if the mother was currently married to the

4th-grader’s father and had never been divorced. Because studies have repeatedly demonstrated

that disrupted parenting is particularly common during marital transitions (Forgatch, Patterson,

& Skinner, 1988; Hetherington, 1989), we chose to examine adjustment among dyads in which


mothers remained married during the study period. Of the 537 mothers that initially contacted

the research office, 182 dyads met our two criteria and were invited to participate. Of these

dyads, 13 (7%) declined participation after hearing more about the study, and four (2%)

repeatedly cancelled their laboratory appointments and were unresponsive to contact by the

researchers. Thus, 165 dyads (91%) participated in the first year of data collection. However, due

to attrition over the course of the study (e.g., relocation or refusal to continue participation) as

well as the exclusion of data following marital separation or divorce, a total of 131 dyads’ data

were available for analysis in the present study.

The data of interest to the present study were collected from adolescents as they

progressed through 6th, 7th, and 8th grades. The sample consisted of 73 girls and 58 boys who

were between the ages of 11 and 13 at the 6th-grade assessment (M = 11.65, SD = .51). The

majority of the sample identified themselves as European American (95%). At the 6th-grade

assessment, mothers had been married for an average of 15.5 years (SD = 3.74), and their

families had an average of 2.5 children (SD = .96). The families tended to be educated and

upper-middle class. In particular, mothers had completed an average of three years of education

after receiving their high school diplomas, and 80% worked full- or part-time outside the home.

The average annual household income per family was $93,614 (SD = 68,491), and the median

value was $75,000. In comparison to the demographic information provided by the schools, the

sample appeared generally representative of the schools from which the participants were drawn.

Procedure

Once annually, mothers and their adolescents visited the university research laboratory

for approximately two hours. Each mother read and signed an informed consent form while, in a

separate room, her child was provided an assent form that was also read aloud. The assent form


informed the children that their mother had given permission for them to participate, but that

they did not have to answer all questions and could stop at any time. The form also told the

children that their names would not be on the packet and that nobody except the researchers, not

even their mothers, would see the answers. Lastly, the adolescents were told that their packets

would be kept in a locked cabinet in the laboratory. During each visit, mothers and adolescents

separately completed self-report questionnaires; however, due to the nature of this study and its

constructs, data from the present study derive exclusively from the adolescents’ self-reports. In

compensation for their participation, the dyads were paid $30.00 in the first year of the study,

and this rate increased by $10.00 each year such that in the fifth year of the study (e.g., when the

adolescent was in 8th grade), each dyad received $70.00.

Design

The present study used a 3-year, longitudinal design employing self-report questionnaire

data. This design allowed for the testing of a time-ordered indirect effects model in which

relations between three variables could be tested. Namely, data allowed the testing of the

following model: adolescents’ perceptions of their mothers’ psychological control measured in

6th grade were hypothesized to predict adolescents’ lowered competence in 7th grade, which, in

turn, was hypothesized to predict adolescents’ subclinical bulimic symptoms as assessed in 8th

grade. Separate models were examined for boys and girls and included controls for prior levels

of bulimic symptoms in 6th grade.

Measures

Perceived maternal psychological control. Perceived maternal psychological control was

assessed with the 8-item Psychological Control Scale-Youth Self-Report (PCS-YSR; Barber,

1996). The PCS-YSR measures the extent to which the adolescent perceives his or her mother as


psychologically controlling through manipulating the his or her behaviors, feelings, and maternal

attachment. Each item asks the adolescent to indicate how his or her mother behaves in response

to various situations and circumstances. For instance, questions ask the adolescents how often

their mother interrupts them, attempts to change their point-of-view, or withdraws affection. In

this way, the PCS-YSR measures how maternal psychological control might exist covertly

through behaviors such as guilt-induction, anxiety-induction, and the withdrawal of love (Barber,

2002). Responses to items such as, “Changes the subject when I have something to say” and “Is

less friendly with me if I do not see things her way” are given on a 5-point scale ranging from 0

(never) to 4 (always). Higher scores indicated higher levels of maternal psychological control.

Evidence of concurrent validity for the PSY-YSR among adolescents is demonstrated by

its expected relations with three other measures: the Acceptance subscale of the Child Report of

Parental Behavior Inventory (CRPBI; Schaefer, 1965), which assesses parental acceptance vs.

rejection of the adolescent (r = .24) (see Krishnakumar, Buehler, & Barber, 2003); the Parental

Knowledge Scale (Sturge-Apple, Gondoli, Bonds, & Salem, 2003), which measures maternal

awareness of adolescents’ activities and acquaintances (r = .30); and the Conflict Behavior

Questionnaire (Robin & Foster, 1989), which assesses negative parent-adolescent conflict

behavior (r = -.57) (for both, see Sturge-Apple et al., 2003). Internal consistency (Cronbach’s

alpha) has been estimated at .81 in a sample of 5th-graders (Barber, 1996), and in the present

study was estimated at .79 for both girls and boys in 6th grade.

Adolescents’ competence. Adolescents’ perceived competence was measured using the

30-item Self-Perception Profile for Children (SPPC; Harter, 1985). This scale assesses

adolescents’ perceptions of their own competencies in five different domains: academic, athletic,

social, appearance, and behavioral conduct. Items are arranged in what Harter (1982) terms a


“structure alternative format,” entailing a two-step process. First, adolescents indicated whether

they were more similar to adolescents who are competent, in any of the given domains, or more

similar to others who are not (e.g., “Some kids are happy with the way they look but other kids

are not happy with the way they look” and “Some kids do very well at their class work but other

kids don’t do very well at their class work”). Second, adolescents indicated whether the

statement they had chosen was “really like me” or, “sort of like me.” This method of response

was found to decrease the influence of socially desirable answers in comparison with other self-

esteem measures (Harter, 1982, 1985). Items were scored on a 4-point rating scale such that

higher scores indicated greater competence.

In comparison to other competence scales, research has shown that the SPPC’s “domain-

specific approach offers optimal construct validity, and may be best able to detect changes over

time” (Cross, McDonald, & Lyons, 1997; Mboya, 1986). More specifically, construct validity of

the SPPC is evidenced by its significant, negative relations with the following scales: the Trait

Anxiety Scale of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for Children (STAIC; Spielberger, 1973),

which measures chronic symptoms of anxiety (r = -.30 to -.56); the Depressie Vragenlijst voor

Kinderen (DVK; De Wit, 1987), which assesses affective, cognitive, and physiological

symptoms of depression (r = -.32 to -.67); and the Externalizing subscale of the Child Behavior

Checklist (CBCL; Achenbach & Edelbrock, 1983), which measures outward, behavioral

problems (r = -.17 to -.30); additionally, positive correlations were found between the SPPC and

the Emotional Quotient-inventory ([EQ-i]; Bar-On & Parker, 1997) which measures emotional

intelligence and one’s ability to cope with environmental demands and pressures (r = .17 to .23)

(for all, see Muris, Meesters, & Fijen, 2003). Individually, each of the subscales of the SPPC has

high internal reliability (r = .71 to .86) and high 9-month retest reliability (r = .80) in children 9


years of age (Butler & Gasson, 2005; Harter, 1985; Jerome, Fujiki, Brinton, & James, 2002;

Strauss, 2000). Further, research by Harter (1982, 1985) with 3rd through 8th graders has yielded

internal consistency values of the entire SPPC ranging from .78 to .84. Another study has

replicated an internal consistency alpha of .84 among both 8th graders and 11th graders (Dumont

& Provost, 1998). In the present study, internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha) of the whole

SPPC was .90 for girls and .88 for boys in 7th grade.

Adolescents’ subclinical bulimic symptoms. The 7-Item Bulimia subscale of the Eating

Disorder Inventory (EDI; Garner, Olmstead, & Polivy, 1983) was used to assess “the tendency

toward episodes of uncontrollable over-eating (bingeing) [that] may be followed by the impulse

to engage in self-induced vomiting” (p. 17). Items measure inclinations towards emotional

eating, secretive eating, uncontrollable bingeing, and obsessions with food. Sample items include

“I eat moderately in front of others and stuff myself when they’re gone” and “I eat when I am

upset.” In response to each item, adolescents indicated how frequently they participate in the

specific behavior, using a continuous 6-point scale ranging from 0 (never) to 5 (always). Garner

et al. (1983) originally recommended scoring items as 0, 0, 0, 1, 2, 3; however, this method

restricts the range of responses. Therefore, to allow for a full range of responses, particularly in

an adolescent, non-referred community sample, responses were coded on a continuous 6-point

scale (see Tylka & Subich, 2004) such that higher scores indicated greater bulimic symptoms.

As articulated by Striegel-Moore (1998), the EDI is the most commonly utilized

standardized self-report measure for assessing behavioral, affective, and cognitive symptoms of

eating disorders. Concurrent validity of the Bulimia subscale of the EDI is evidenced by its

positive relation with the EDI’s Body Dissatisfaction subscale (r = .39) and the Drive for

Thinness subscale (r = .36); relations have also been found between the Bulimia subscale and


other weight- and body image-related measures, such as the Physical Appearance Comparison

Subscale (Thompson et al., 1991) (r = .37) (for all, see Shroff & Thompson, 2006). The

criterion-related validity of the Bulimia subscale is supported by its relation to clinicians’

assessments of the relevance of bulimic characteristics in individual patients (r = .57) (Garner et

al.,1983). The Bulimia subscale has demonstrated evidence of its internal consistency with 11- to

18-year-old adolescent girls (� = .69) and boys (� = .63) (Shore & Porter, 1990). Internal

consistency of the subscale in the present study (Cronbach’s alpha) was estimated at .77 for girls

and .75 for boys in 6th grade, and .75 for girls and .71 for boys in 8th grade.

Results

Descriptive Statistics

All means, standard deviations, and intercorrelations for the study variables were

calculated and are reported separately for girls and boys. See Table 1 for girls’ reports on the

study variables and Table 2 for boys’ reports. As depicted, correlations between the model

variables were strong, statistically significant, and in the expected directions, providing initial

support for testing the hypothesized models for both girls and boys.

Model Testing

The process of model testing included examination of a particular indirect effects model

such that perceived maternal psychological control in 6th grade predicted adolescents’ level of

competence in 7th grade, which in turn predicted adolescents’ subclinical bulimic symptoms in

8th grade. Separate models were tested for boys and girls. In addition, each hypothesized indirect

effects model controlled for prior levels of bulimic symptoms in 6th grade.

The Mplus 4.0 program was used to estimate relations among the study variables and

derive model fit (Muthén & Muthén, 2006). The significance of the standardized path


coefficients was determined by comparing the t-ratio to a critical t(.05) of 1.96. Model fit was

assessed with the chi square statistic, the Comparative Fit Index (CFI; Bentler, 1990), and the

Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA; Steiger, 1990). Models that provided a

good fit to the data had non-significant (p > .05) chi square values, CFIs greater than .95, and

RMSEAs less than .06 (Hu & Bentler, 1999). Thus, the overall fit of the models was determined

based on the significance of standardized path coefficients, the chi-square statistic, and the fit

indices.

Hypothesized Indirect Effects Model

Girls’ Reports. We first examined our hypothesized model using adolescent girls’ reports

(see Figure 1). Results indicated that model fit was good (� 2(2) = .12, p = .94; CFI = 1.00;

RMSEA < .001), and that all path coefficients for the indirect effects were significant and in the

expected directions. This suggests that higher levels of perceived maternal psychological control

in 6th grade led to lower adolescent competence in 7th grade (� = -.41), which in turn predicted

higher levels of subsequent bulimic symptoms in 8th grade (� = -.20). It is important to note that

this pattern of indirect effects existed while controlling for girls’ prior bulimic symptoms in 6th

grade.

Boys’ Reports. Next, we tested our hypothesized model using adolescent boys’ reports

(see Figure 2). Results indicated that model fit was acceptable (� 2(2) = 8.30, p = .015; CFI = .80;

RMSEA = .23), and that all path coefficients for the indirect effects were significant and in the

expected directions. This indicates that higher levels of perceived maternal psychological control

in 6th grade led to lower adolescent competence in 7th grade (� = -.27), which in turn predicted

higher levels of subsequent bulimic symptoms in 8th grade (� = -.31). Furthermore, as seen with


the girls’ reports, this pattern of indirect effects existed even when controlling for boys’ prior

bulimic symptoms in 6th grade.

Discussion

The present study examined whether higher perceived maternal psychological control in

6th grade would affect adolescents’ level of competence in 7th which would, in turn, predict

adolescents’ subclinical bulimic symptoms in 8th grade. Examining self-reports separately for

each gender, we found support for our hypothesized indirect effects model for both girls and

boys. Further, both models controlled for prior levels of subclinical bulimic symptoms, which

therefore allowed us to predict increases in symptoms. This longitudinal analysis is consistent

with prior cross-sectional studies of the individual links between constructs (e.g., Frederick &

Grow, 1996; French et al., 2001; Lakshmi & Arora, 2006). To our knowledge, our study is the

first to examine the associations between all three constructs longitudinally during the transition

to adolescence.

First, we found that higher levels of perceived maternal psychological control in 6th grade

led to lower levels of adolescent competence in 7th grade. Psychological control, by definition,

hinders the “child’s development of independence and self-direction by keeping the child

emotionally dependent on the parent” (Petit et al., 2001, p. 584). By hindering such development

of autonomy and freedom to establish an independent identity, parental psychological control

compromises adolescents’ level of competence (Baumrind, 1967; Bowlby, 1982; Steinberg,

1990). Empirical research supports this notion that high levels of perceived psychological control

from parents often result in adolescents’ feelings of diminished competence (e.g., Lakshmi &

Arora, 2006; McDowell & Parke, 2000), and our findings are consistent with these conclusions.


Second, we found that lowered competence in 7th grade predicted higher levels of

adolescent subclinical bulimic symptoms in 8th grade. This finding is supported by theory, which

considers competence to be a central component of cognitive-behavioral models of bulimia in

terms of preoccupation with body-related issues, likelihood of subscribing to culturally

prescribed ideals of thinness, vulnerability to social pressures to be thin, likelihood of dieting,

and diminished coping skills (Bardone et al., 2003; Fairburn & Wilson, 1993; Garner et al.,

1983; Stice, 1994; Striegel-Moore et al., 1986a). Our findings also coincide with numerous

studies that have linked low competence with bulimic behavior in particular (e.g., Katzman &

Wolchik, 1984; Shisslak et al., 1990), as well as other findings that cite low self-esteem as one of

the most consistent personality-related issues for women with clinical eating disorders in general

(Etringer et al., 1989; Frederick & Grow, 1996).

The findings of our study highlight the importance of both parenting and fostering

feelings of competence in the processes of preventing adolescent eating disturbances including

bulimia. Although both parenting styles and low self-esteem have been examined separately as

predictors of eating disturbances in adolescence, our study provides a model for how these

constructs work together over an extended period of time, in a potentially harmful way. The

relations examined and confirmed in this study should therefore be considered in preventing

maladaptive eating practices among adolescent girls and boys.

Some limitations of our data should be noted. First, our sample consisted of primarily

European American, middle-class mother-adolescent dyads that were from maritally intact

families. A more diverse sample in regard to ethnicity and socioeconomic status would allow

broader generalizations of our findings. For example, when compared to European American

females, eating disturbances have been found to be equally common among Hispanic females,


more frequent among Native Americans, and less frequent among African American and Asian

American females; moreover, the nature of the maladaptive eating patterns tends to differ with

ethnicity (Crago, Shisslak, & Estes, 1996). In regards to socioeconomic status (SES), Rogers,

Resnick, Mitchell and Blum (1997) found a significant positive relationship between SES and

unhealthy eating or dieting behaviors, such that adolescents from low SES families may have

more subclinical eating disturbances than adolescents from middle or upper SES families. Thus,

future studies should examine the processes involved in predicting adolescent eating disorders

among different ethnic groups or those from varying SES levels.

Second, this study did not include adolescents’ perceptions about fathers, which may

have been especially useful in analyzing boys’ data because boys likely identify physically more

with their father than mother. Further, father data may have been useful given Montemayor’s

(1982) finding that while young children tend to spend the majority of their time exclusively

with their mothers, adolescents seem to share time with both parents, although spending most

time with the same-sex parent. Thus, mothers appear to become less involved with their children,

especially their sons, while fathers’ involvement may remain stable for daughters and actually

increase for sons. However, our conclusions remain useful given previous literature that indicates

mothers are more influential than fathers in communicating weight-loss messages to their

children (McCabe & Ricciardelli, 2005).

Finally, we chose to examine one particular model with adolescents’ competence as a

mediator between maternal psychological control and subclinical bulimic symptoms. Whereas

research indicates that competence is linked to eating disorders, there may indeed be other

mediators that could have been included in our model. For instance, other personality

disturbances (e.g., chronic anxiety, dysphoria, and emotional instability) have been found to be


related to bulimia and eating disorders (Herman & Polivy, 1980; Ruderman & Grace, 1988;

Willmuth, Leitenberg, Rosen, & Cado, 1988). Because parental psychological control, by

definition, keeps the child emotionally dependent on the parent (Petit et al., 2001), it is possible

that adolescents who perceive high levels of maternal psychological control may also experience

varying levels of these personality disturbances. Empirical evidence has found that parental

psychological control is associated with internalized problems such as loneliness (Freeman &

Barber, 1996) and depression (Barber, 1996). Thus, future work should examine the role of other

personality disturbances as potential mediators of the connection between parenting difficulties

and adolescents’ disordered eating patterns.

Despite these limitations, the present study makes several contributions. First, we tested

all three constructs together in a longitudinal study. Many studies in the past have focused on

either the contribution of parenting (e.g., Keery et al., 2004; McCabe & Ricciardelli, 2005) or

competence (e.g., Katzman & Wolchik, 1984; Shisslak et al., 1990), but few studies have

examined the combined influence of both variables on adolescents’ bulimic symptoms. Thus, the

present study provides a framework to understand how these constructs are not necessarily

independent but may be interrelated, working together to predict eating disturbances.

Furthermore, the present study was longitudinal, providing for a time-ordered investigation of

one particular model. Whereas many past studies were cross-sectional (e.g., Frederick & Grow,

1996), this study helps elucidate how these variables function over time to predict eating

disturbances. Additionally, we used a stringent method for assessing our indirect effects model.

By controlling for prior levels of subclinical bulimic symptoms, we were able to examine change

in this variable over time.


A second contribution is that we focus on the relatively understudied period of the

transition to adolescence. Studies of parenting practices and their outcomes during this particular

period are somewhat rare. In fact, when examining eating disturbances, researchers have often

focused specifically on older adolescents or emerging adults, especially college students (e.g.,

Frederick & Grow, 1996; Katzman and Wolchik, 1984; Shisslak et al., 1990). However, data

from this particular age group is important because evidence has shown that eating disorders are

now developing increasingly earlier in the lifespan (Eisele, Hertsgaard, & Light, 1986; U.S.

Department of Health and Human Services, 2000). For instance, Dohnt and Tiggermann (2006)

report that by the age of 6, most girls have conveyed both body image concerns and a desire to

be thinner. During childhood and early adolescence, parents are very involved with their children

and spend a lot of time together. Thus, it remains essential to examine parent-child relations

during this period.

Third, this study considered how the risk factors of maternal psychological control and

low self-esteem affected both genders, whereas previous studies have tended to focus almost

exclusively on girls’ eating disturbances. However, with data indicating that male eating

disturbances are on the rise (National Institute of Mental Health, 2004; Spitzer et al., 1993) as

well as the finding that the course and outcome of eating disorders are remarkably similar in

adolescent boys as in adolescent girls (Eliot & Baker, 2001), it is essential that researchers begin

to focus on eating disturbances among males. We note that our proposed model fit very well

using girls’ data but was only acceptable for boys’ data, despite significant path coefficients.

This may indicate the importance of considering other relevant factors in boys’ development of

subclinical bulimic symptoms. For instance, because findings have suggested that male eating

disturbances are related to the advantage of low weight in certain sports (Sundgot-Borgen &


Torstveit, 2004), it is possible that paternal effects are more influential, since boys tend to

identify more with their fathers in terms of sports (McElroy, 1983). Further, previous studies of

early adolescents have found evidence suggesting that whereas girls are focused solely on

weight, boys concentrate not only on their weight but also their muscularity (McCabe &

Ricciardelli, 2005). These variations in body-related concerns may result in slightly different

manifestations of disordered eating amongst the separate genders. Thus, although our study

importantly sets a precedent for including males in the examination of adolescent eating

disturbances, it is important that future research continue to focus on adolescent males’

development in order to determine unique processes that may influence such eating disturbances

for boys.

In our study, adolescents’ level of competence served as an indirect link between

maternal psychological control and subclinical bulimic symptoms. Generally speaking, the

results from this study highlight the importance of the relational side of parenting. In particular, a

psychologically controlling parenting style may hinder the adolescents’ autonomy and self-

reliance, leading to lowered competence and therefore resulting in increased vulnerability to

eating disturbances such as bulimic symptoms. Uncovering this particular process may

ultimately be beneficial for future prevention efforts. As eating disturbances continue to begin

earlier in the lifespan, during which parents still significantly influence these young adolescents,

parents can be encouraged to take a primary role in promoting self-competence and diminishing

disordered eating amongst their children. Our conclusions suggest one specific way in which

parents, and especially mothers, can foster healthy eating and body image by reducing

psychological control and fostering autonomy, thereby aiding their child in developing autonomy

and, consequently, self-esteem.


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Figure Captions

Figure 1. Longitudinal indirect effects model of perceived maternal psychological control,

adolescent competence level, and adolescent subclinical bulimic symptoms for girls’ reports.

Figure 2. Longitudinal indirect effects model of perceived maternal psychological control,

adolescent competence level, and adolescent subclinical bulimic symptoms for boys’ reports.

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