Norris D L
Psychol Med. 1984 Nov;14(4):835-42. doi: 10.1017/s0033291700019802.
Using an apparatus which provides a continuous horizontal slit of light of variable length, self-estimations of 4 body widths were carried out before and after a mirror confrontation procedure on 4 groups of young female subjects--anorexic, bulimic, emotionally disturbed and normal. The results confirm that anorexic subjects overestimate body size, although in this study the hip diameter was frequently underestimated. Bulimic and emotionally disturbed subjects overestimate to much the same degree as anorexics, whereas normal subjects are remarkably accurate with the exception of the head width. Mirror confrontation resulted in reduced estimations in the majority of subjects, but significant differences were found in the degree to which this occurred in the 4 groups; anorexic subjects showed the greatest change and normal subjects the least. This relative instability of the anorexic subject's body image cannot be explained simply on the basis of a self-correcting experience, as many estimations which were initially below actual width were even lower on re-testing. In the anorexic and bulimic groups a significant correlation was found between the degree of overestimation after mirror confrontation and progress in treatment, as measured on a specially devised rating scale. Possible explanations for these findings and their diagnostic and prognostic implications are discussed.
使用一种能提供长度可变的连续水平狭缝光的仪器，在4组年轻女性受试者（神经性厌食症患者、暴食症患者、情绪障碍者和正常人）身上，于镜像对照程序前后进行了4次身体宽度的自我估计。结果证实，神经性厌食症患者高估身体尺寸，尽管在本研究中髋部直径经常被低估。暴食症患者和情绪障碍患者的高估程度与神经性厌食症患者大致相同，而正常受试者除头部宽度外相当准确。镜像对照使大多数受试者的估计值降低，但4组中出现这种情况的程度存在显著差异；神经性厌食症患者的变化最大，正常受试者的变化最小。神经性厌食症患者身体意象的这种相对不稳定性不能简单地基于自我纠正体验来解释，因为许多最初低于实际宽度的估计在重新测试时甚至更低。在神经性厌食症和暴食症组中，发现镜像对照后的高估程度与治疗进展之间存在显著相关性，治疗进展是通过专门设计的评分量表来衡量的。讨论了这些发现的可能解释及其诊断和预后意义。
