Fear of maturity in adolescents with anorexia nervosa

Abstract

Childhood and is considered one of the psychological constructs that has been clinically relevant for people with anorexia nervosa (AN). The study aims to determine the proportion of patients with AN in our study sample that presents fear of maturity, and examine whether there are differences between patients with restrictive AN (AN-R) and purgative AN (AN-P) in terms of fear of maturity. The sample consists of 115 adolescents diagnosed with AN. The patients completed the Inventory of Eating Disorders (EDI-3) that includes the psychological variable fear of maturity. The results indicate that 86.1% of the sample presents a typical or high clinical range in the fear of maturity subscale and there are no significant differences between the diagnoses of AN-R and AN-P (t=.160; p=.873). This study highlights the importance of focusing in daily clinical practice on the fear of maturity of these patients, both at a preventive level and in the treatment of AN.