Metamotivational characteristics of exercise dependence and eating disorders in highly active amateur sport participants

Abstract

By analyzing psychological characteristics of physically active participants, the aim of this investigation was to use the Reversal Theory (RT) framework to determine whether primary and secondary exercise dependence could be considered as (two distinct) and independent conditions. Highly active amateur participants (N=393), of which 95 were clinically diagnosed as eating disordered, were allocated, on the basis of questionnaire responses, to one of four groups: Primary dependence (n=58), secondary dependence (n=52), eating disordered (n=45) and a control group (no dependence or disordered group, n=238). Canonical correlation initially found eating disorders and exercise dependence to have a positive relationship with telic and arousal avoidance characteristics. Exercise dependence also displayed a positive relationship to autic metamotivational dominance. A positive correlation was also evident between pessimism and eating disorders. However, (M)ANOVA subsequently revealed the two eating disordered groups to be significantly more telic, and arousal avoiding, but lower on optimism and negativistic characteristics than the non-eating disordered groups. The control group scored significantly higher in mastery dominance than the primary group. These results suggest that at amateur levels of sport, primary exercise dependence is distinct in its psychological characteristics from secondary exercise dependence and thus the psychological needs it represents.