Eating Disorders and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: An ...

obsessions. In effect, these behaviours are consistent with the individual’s core belief
system and as such, they are associated with attaining an ideal body shape and weight
rather than reducing anxiety.
On the contrary, Reas and colleagues (2002) asserted that checking
behaviours may have an obsessive-compulsive type relationship with body
dissatisfaction, whereby body checking reduces anxiety and distress that surrounds
concerns over shape and weight. Research examining the cognitions that are
associated with body checking have yielded some fruitful information in support of an
obsessive-compulsive type relationship. In developing the Body Checking Cognitions
Scale (BCCS), Mountford and colleagues (2006) identified four cognitive biases that
are associated with body checking. These include:
a) Objective Verification: The belief that body checking will help to obtain an
accurate picture of one’s size and shape.
b) Reassurance: The belief that body checking will reduce the anxiety that is
associated with body shape.
c) Safety Beliefs: The belief that a feared consequence will occur if one does not
engage in body checking.
d) Body Control: The belief that body checking helps one to moderate food intake
and control body shape.
On face value, the Reassurance and Safety Belief domains allude to an
obsessive-compulsive relationship between concerns over shape and weight, and body
checking. However, research is yet to examine potential relationships between these
variables. Only preliminary data has been obtained thus far, with Mountford and
colleagues (2006) reporting that body checking cognitions are highly correlated with
body checking behaviours in individuals who meet DSM-IV-TR criteria for AN, BN, and
EDNOS. Reassurance, Safety Beliefs, and Body Control are most related to disordered
eating behaviours whilst Objective Verification is equally common among eating
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