Convergent validity of the eating disorder inventory and the anorexia nervosa inventory for self-rating in an Austrian nonclinical population.

This study assesses the convergent and divergent validity of the Eating Disorder Inventory (EDI--German version) and the Anorexia Nervosa Inventory for Self-Rating (ANIS) in a German-speaking nonclinical population. One hundred fifty-five female and 224 male Austrian medical students were surveyed. Validity was studied at a dimensional level, separately for both sexes, by correlating with conceptually related as well as distinct scales. These instruments included the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ). The intercorrelation coefficients of the EDI and the ANIS were similar to the original samples. In women, the convergent validity of the EDI and the ANIS was confirmed, especially for the subscales measuring the specific psychopathology (r = .43 to .84) and for ineffectiveness/feelings of inadequacy (r = .63). The EDI subscales Maturity Fears and Interpersonal Distrust and the ANIS subscales Obsessive-Compulsive Traits and Sexual Anxiety address traits not included in the other test and these showed divergent validity. Divergent validity of the ANIS and to a lesser degree the EDI with the GHQ was established. Both tests can be equally recommended for female subjects. In males however, the validity indices of both tests were generally lower and convergent and divergent validity was not established.