The Relationship between Eating Disorders with Perfectionism and Cognitive Distortions in Female College Students

Background and This study aimed at investigating the relationship between eating disorders with perfectionism and cognitive distortions in female students.
The study population included 6289 female students in Sari Islamic Azad University. We performed a descriptive correlational study in 500 female students who were selected by random cluster sampling. The research instrument included the Eating Habits Questionnaire (EHQ; Coker and Roger 1990), Positive and Negative Perfectionism Scale (PANPS; Terry-Short et al., 1995) and Albert Ellis`s Cognitive distortions questionnaire. Data analysis was done applying descriptive statistics methods, Pearson's correlation and multivariate regression test in SPSS ver.17.
The results showed no significant relationship between concerns about weight and anorexia nervosa with perfectionism (r=-0.005, r=0.05, p>0.05). There was a positive relationship between bulimia nervosa and perfectionism (P Eating disorders are directly associated with individual’s thoughts and cognition, therefore, cognitive therapy could be of great use in treating these patients.