The Relationship Between Sexual Violence and Disordered Eating

Abstract

College women who experience sexual violence (SV) and disordered eating (DE) are at risk for comorbid mental health symptomology (depression, somatization) and risky health behaviors (dating status, alcohol use). The purpose of this study is to explore associations of coexisting sexual violence history and disordered eating with mental health and health behaviors in college women. This cross sectional descriptive study is a secondary analysis of survey data from college students from five universities (n = 2747). College women with both SV and DE were more likely to experience increased depressive and somatic symptoms and participate in risky health behaviors.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

I am thankful to Dr. Angela Amar for her mentorship and guidance. I would also like to acknowledge Dr. Catherine Vena and Dr. Melissa Pinto for their encouragement, support, and attentiveness throughout this journey.

Declaration of Interest: The authors certify that there is no conflict of interest with any organizations regarding the material discussed in this manuscript. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the article.