ArticleFrontiers in psychology2015
Does compulsive behavior in Anorexia Nervosa resemble an addiction? A qualitative investigation.
Article in Frontiers in psychology, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 25 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
25 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 50 citations in OpenAlex.
- 'In an otherwise limitless world, I was sure of my limit.'Frontiers in psychiatry · 2022Pooled it
- Descriptions of Disordered Eating in German Psychiatric Textbooks, 1803-2017.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2020Pooled it
- A scoping review on weight loss injections and eating disorders: therapeutic impact, risks of misuse, and emerging harms.Journal of eating disorders · 2026Review
- Symptom impact and safety of ketogenic therapy in adults with anorexia nervosa: a feasibility trial.Communications medicine · 2026Article
- Disentangling food addiction-related symptom profiles in anorexia nervosa: a latent class analysis and clinical implications.Journal of eating disorders · 2026Article
- Anorexia nervosa: 150 years of critical theory.Journal of eating disorders · 2026Review
- From compulsivity to compulsion: the neural basis of compulsive disorders.Nature reviews. Neuroscience · 2024Review
- Why do we climb mountains? An exploration of features of behavioural addiction in mountaineering and the association with stress-related psychiatric disorders.European archives of psychiatry and clinical neuroscience · 2023Article
- Living and leaving a life of coercion: a qualitative interview study of patients with anorexia nervosa and multiple involuntary treatment events.Journal of eating disorders · 2023Article
- Learned industriousness as a translational mechanism in anorexia nervosa.Nature reviews psychology · 2023Article
- Paraventricular hypothalamic vasopressin neurons induce self-grooming in mice.Molecular brain · 2022Article
- Obsessive-compulsive symptoms in young women affected with anorexia nervosa, and their relationship with personality, psychopathology, and attachment style.Eating and weight disorders : EWD · 2022Article
- Deep Brain Stimulation of the Nucleus Accumbens in Severe Enduring Anorexia Nervosa: A Pilot Study.Frontiers in behavioral neuroscience · 2022Article
- The influence of homeostatic mechanisms on neural regulation of food craving in anorexia nervosa.Psychological medicine · 2021Article
- Physical activity behaviors and attitudes among women with an eating disorder: a qualitative study.Journal of eating disorders · 2021Article
- Eating disorders with over-exercise: A cross-sectional analysis of the mediational role of problematic usage of the internet in young people.Journal of psychiatric research · 2021Article
- Predicting the restrictive eating, exercise, and weight monitoring compulsions of anorexia nervosa.Eating and weight disorders : EWD · 2020Article
- Dopaminergic activity and exercise behavior in anorexia nervosa.OBM neurobiology · 2020Article
- Bad Things Come to Those Who Do Not Wait: Temporal Discounting Is Associated With Compulsive Overeating, Eating Disorder Psychopathology and Food Addiction.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2019Article
- Controlling the laxative abuse of anorexia nervosa patients with the Serigaya Methamphetamine Relapse Prevention Program workbook: a case report.BioPsychoSocial medicine · 2019Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
2 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
The characteristic relentless self-starvation behavior seen in Anorexia Nervosa (AN) has been described as evidence of compulsivity, with increasing suggestion of parallels with addictive behavior. This study used a thematic qualitative analysis to investigate the parallels between compulsive behavior in AN and Substance Use Disorders (SUD). Forty individuals currently suffering from AN completed an online questionnaire reflecting on their experience of compulsive behavior in AN. Eight main themes emerged from thematic qualitative analysis; compulsivity as central to AN, impaired control, escalating compulsions, emotional triggers, negative reactions, detrimental continuation of behavior, functional impairment, and role in recovery. These results suggested that individuals with AN view the compulsive nature of their behavior as central to the maintenance of their disorder, and as a significant barrier to recovery. The themes that emerged also showed parallels with the DSM-V criteria for SUDs, mapping onto the four groups of criteria (impaired control, social impairment, risky use of substance, pharmacological criteria). These results emphasize the need for further research to explore the possible parallels in behavioral and neural underpinnings of compulsivity in AN and SUDs, which may inform novel treatment avenues for AN.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.