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Eating disorder research: From soup to nuts
Journal article

Eating disorder research: From soup to nuts

Michael R Lowe and Vicki L Clark
PsycCritiques, v 56(10), pp No Pagination Specified-No Pagination Specified
01 Jan 2011
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/a0022782

Abstract

Adolescent Psychopathology Child Psychopathology Diagnosis Eating Disorders Experimentation Human Prevention Psychological Assessment Treatment
Reviews the book, The Oxford handbook of eating disorders edited by W. Stewart Agras (see record 2010-13784-000). As one would expect from a handbook, The Oxford handbook of eating disorders aims to provide an up-to-date description of the progress made in understanding, treating, and preventing eating disorders and to offer suggestions for future directions. It succeeds admirably at these goals. Furthermore, whereas most recent books on eating disorders have maintained a primary focus on treatments, the comprehensive nature of this book increases its value to the eating disorder literature. These chapters provide a timely review of the issues regarding the nosology of eating disorders just as revisions to the diagnostic criteria are being determined for the fifth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM–V). The authors describe the current diagnostic categories and proposed alternatives, and they review relevant (and recent) research on different classification methods and the epidemiology of eating disorders. There is also discussion of issues related to the assessment, treatment, and research of child and adolescent eating disorders, which have been surprisingly understudied despite the fact that eating disorders often develop in adolescence (Hoek & van Hoeken, 2003). The book is not a clinical handbook, and therefore readers will not find a wealth of “how to” information in this section. They will, however, find a detailed review of the evidence supporting each treatment approach. A minor criticism regarding this section concerns the order of the chapters. Overall, The Oxford handbook of eating disorders is an excellent contribution to the eating disorders literature. It includes diverse topics that are not often addressed within the same volume. It is well written by experts in the field, well organized, and easy to read. The chapters are unusually comprehensive and provide definitive reviews on many important topics. Each chapter begins with an abstract providing a brief synopsis of the content of the chapter. This is a rare component of a text like this, but it is a useful feature that enhances the readability of the book. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

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