Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41750116›Full record

ArticleBehavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland)2026

From Interpersonal Insecurity to Disordered Eating: The Mediating Pathway of Appearance-Based Rejection Sensitivity.

Liang Zhang, Yang Zeng, Yanqiang Tao, Xiangping Liu, Shujian Wang

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland), 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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0citing papers in PubMed
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1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

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3 · Its place in the literature

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No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

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PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors.

Liang ZhangCollege Students' Mental Health Education Center, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, China.ORCID 0000-0001-6231-8653
Yang ZengFaculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China.
Yanqiang TaoShanghai Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Psychological Crisis Intervention, School of Psychology and Cognitive Science, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200062, China.
Xiangping LiuFaculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China.ORCID 0000-0001-8764-2038
Shujian WangFaculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Eating disorders among adolescents have emerged as a significant global public health concern, with attachment anxiety identified as a critical risk factor for anorexia nervosa (AN) symptoms. Individuals with attachment anxiety often exhibit heightened sensitivity to others' perceptions and an intense fear of rejection, which may exacerbate their vulnerability to body image concerns. This study investigates the mediating role of appearance-based rejection sensitivity (ARS) and the moderating effect of sex in the relationship between attachment anxiety and AN symptoms among Chinese college students. A total of 826 participants aged 16-25 (M = 18.95, SD = 1.08, 60% females) completed online surveys using three validated scales: the Revised Adult Attachment Scale (RAAS) to assess attachment anxiety, the Appearance-based Rejection Sensitivity Scale (ARSS) to measure sensitivity to rejection related to physical appearance, and the Eating Disorders Inventory (EDI) to evaluate AN symptoms. The results reveal that there was no significant difference in attachment anxiety between males and females, while females experienced significantly higher levels of ARS and severity of AN symptoms than males. Attachment anxiety is positively correlated with AN symptoms, with ARS mediating this association. Sex further moderates the relationship between ARS and AN symptoms, with stronger effects observed in females. Current findings suggest that AN symptoms are closely associated with contemporaneous attachment anxiety, with passive sensitivity to potential rejection acting as a mediating factor. This underscores the importance of addressing attachment styles and communication patterns in interventions targeting adolescent AN symptoms, particularly in females.

Indexed as

anorexia nervosaappearance-based rejection sensitivityattachment anxietyeating disordergender difference

Identifiers

PMID41750116
PMCPMC12937995

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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.