Binge eating and associated habit patterns within college student and identified bulimic populations

The purpose of this study was to assess commonalities in binge eating and other problem behavior patterns in male and female college students, and in a group of women diagnosed as bulimic. Both males and females in the college student group reported a substantial frequency of eating an excessive amount of food in a relatively short period of time. A family history of substance abuse was significantly related to reported binge behavior for college females, but not for college males. Marked similarities were found among the college and clinical group women in the emotional antecedents and consequents of the eating binge, and in the foods consumed. The males reported a significantly greater proportion of positive affect after a binge episode. A general pattern of impulse-control problems was reported by a significant number of the clinically identified bulimic group.