Abstract: | A group of obese people who had not sought treatment; an obese group who had sought treatment in a professional, hospital-based program; and normal-weight controls (N?=?547) were compared in regard to level of psychopathology, binge eating, and negative emotional eating. Because the groups differed significantly on several demographic variables, 3 demographically matched groups were created and compared (n?=?177, 59 per group). In the matched subgroups, obese people who had sought treatment reported greater psychopathology and more binge eating than did normal-weight controls or those who had not sought treatment. Both obese groups (including those who had not sought treatment) endorsed more symptoms of distress, negative emotional eating, overeating, difficulty resisting temptation, and less exercise than did normal-weight controls. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved) |