Symbolic functioning in anorexia nervosa.

ABSTRACT

This study examined 20 patients with anorexia nervosa using a projective test with a quantitative scoring system (the SAT9), and an indirect measure of symbolic function (the interoceptive awareness subscale of the EDI). The findings support the clinical observation that patients with anorexia nervosa are often arrested developmentally, and are without the ability to deal adequately with the anxieties created by the process of maturation. The results of this study have significance for the psychotherapy techniques used in the treatment of these patients.