Coping Strategies and anxiety: preliminary survey on a sample of women with eating disorders

The coping strategies are studied and the relationship between levels of anxiety that show people with eating disorders. Among instruments of assessment applied to a sample of 30 women (10 with anorexia and 20 with bulimia), appear the STAI of Spielberger and cols (1982) and the Ways of Coping Questionnaire of Lazarus and Folkman (1986). The results reveal the presence of high level in the dimension Anxiety-State of mind in the group with bulimia. Also, it has been found that when this group confronts the disorder, it uses preferently the avoidance and escape coping in contrast to the group of anorexics who characterizes by looking for more social support and reevaluating positively the situation. The analysis of the facts shows a direct association between the avoidance coping and the dimension anxiety-trait.