Romantic relationships for women with anorexia nervosa: an integrative literature review.

OBJECTIVE

To critically appraise literature concerning romantic relationships for women with anorexia nervosa (AN), and to gain perspective on future research directives.

METHOD

Key electronic databases, reference lists, and journals were searched. The search was limited to features of romantic relationships and their quality. Nineteen studies were critiqued and abstracted.

RESULTS

All 19 studies used a quantitative design; no qualitative studies were retrieved. Methodological strengths of these studies included confounder control and appropriate statistical analyses for design. Weaknesses included a failure to declare study designs, address sources of bias, and justify study samples, as well as a lack of con-founder control.

DISCUSSION

The review drew attention to the varied relational experiences and marked relationship dissatisfaction expressed by women with AN. However, an understanding of relationship quality and its dynamic nature remains limited. Future research should focus on how meanings are negotiated in relationships, providing detailed descriptions of the women's experiences, which is best done with qualitative study. Well-conducted longitudinal research should address questions that cannot be answered by current research designs, such as temporality.