CUP Undergraduate Research
Title
Birth Order Relationships and Disordered Eating Behaviors Among a Sample of College Students
Date of Award
Spring 5-6-2009
Document Type
Restricted Access Thesis
College
College of Theology, Arts, & Sciences
Department
Psychology
Degree Name
Psychology, BA
First Advisor
Dr. Kevin Simpson
Abstract
The development of eating disorders has been a growing epidemic since the mid 1900’s. Causes such as media, parenting, sports, and psychological factors have been at the core of empirical studies in recent times. The variability of birth order as being a cause of disordered eating has been pushed aside in recent research. Birth order has great significance on the development of an individual’s personality. In accordance to birth order, the researcher may gather information from a positional approach or a personality trait approach. For this particular study, it is important to concentrate on birth order status based on personality and its affect on the development of disordered eating. The purpose of this study is to investigate the correlation between birth order and eating disorders. For this study, 137 participants from Concordia University were given the Eating Attitudes Test and a Birth Order Survey in order to determine a correlation. Though the hypothesis was not statistically supported, this topic should be researched in the future in regards to health reasons and concerns.