The role of bulimic behaviors in affect regulation: Different functions for different patient subgroups?

One hundred and eighty consecutive patients seeking treatment for eating disorders rated adjectives describing their affective states before binge eating and after purging. Patients were divided into borderline (n = 40) and nonborderline (n = 35) groups and were compared on the above dimensions. Both patient subgroups reported reductions in anxiety and fragmentation after the binge-purge episode. The borderline subgroup, however, experienced significantly greater reductions in anxiety and a decreased level of depression, while the nonborderline subgroup reported a slight increase in their level of depression. The clinical and research implications of these findings are discussed.