Do parental traumatic experiences have a role in the psychologicalfunctioning of early adolescents with binge eating disorder?

PurposeFew studies have addressed the psychologicalcharacteristics of adolescents with binge eating disorder(BED). No research has focused on the psychologicalfunctioning of these adolescents’ parents or on the preva-lence of traumatic experiences among them.MethodsIn this study, 202 adolescents aged 11–13 andtheir parents were recruited from mental health clinics tocomplete the youth self-report (YSR), the response evalu-ation measure for youth (REM-71), the Toronto Alex-ithymia Scale (TAS-20), the Symptom Check-List (SCL-90-R), and the traumatic experience checklist (TEC).ResultsFemale adolescents scored higher than males onwithdrawal, internalizing problems, dissociation, andsomatization subscales. Boys scored higher than girls onexternalizing problems and acting out subscales. Maternaldepression predicted withdrawal and dissociation in femaleadolescents. Maternal sexual abuse predicted social prob-lems in males and self-destructive behaviors in females.Paternal physical abuse predicted delinquent behavior andacting out in males.ConclusionsOur data suggest that parental traumaticexperiences play a role in their offspring’s mental health;the data also showed different psychopathological config-urations in male and female adolescents with BED andtheir parents, suggesting the development of preventionand treatment polices specific to gender.