Exploring the effects of gender and sexual orientation on disordered eating: an EFA to CFA study of the Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire.

Our idea of what an eating disorder looks like is tied to the kind of participant that is usually included in research. However, a wide range of people struggle with their body image. It can be difficult to measure what kinds of experiences these individuals have as the questionnaires typically used were not validated in marginalised groups. This study aims to see if a commonly used questionnaire is useful in men and women identifying as gay, lesbian, bisexual, and heterosexual and if there are differences in the kinds of disordered eating thoughts and behaviours that these groups experience. A version of the questionnaire with three factors fits this data well. Sexual orientation does seem to influence the rates of disordered eating in men but not women. Heterosexual men experience more behaviours that might be related to muscularity, whereas gay men show more concerns regarding body shape and leanness. Bisexual men show lower levels of disordered eating. We suggest that considering gender and sexual orientation when treating disordered eating may help clinicians to tailor interventions. Our idea of what an eating disorder looks like is a narrow view of a much broader picture.