(PS5-68) Racial Trauma as a Predictor for Eating Disorder Psychopathology

Objective: Despite emerging research suggesting that experiencing racial/ethnic discrimination is associated with greater odds of binge eating behaviors (add citation), , there remains a critical gap in understanding racial trauma as a unique predictor of ED pathology in ethnic minority populations. This study aims to address this gap by investigating prevalence of people screening positive for an ED in a sample of ethnic minority university students.

Method: Ethnic minority university students (n = 31,8120) enrolled in the 2021-2022 Healthy Mind Study completed the SCOFF questionnaire to screen for ED pathology and 7 questions from the Trauma Symptoms of Discrimination scale to assess racial trauma. The association between racial trauma and ED pathology was evaluated using a binary logistic regression model adjusting for gender and race/ethnicity.

Results: The overall model was statistically significant (X2 (1) = 45.00, p = < .001), with Nagelkerke R-squared value of .07. Racial trauma was a significant predictor of screening positive for an ED status, even after accounting for race/ethnicity and gender (OR = 1.08, p</span> = < .001). For every one-point increase in racial trauma, there was an 8% increase in odds of screening positive for an ED. 


Discussion: The findings of this study highlight the importance of examining racial trauma among ethnic minority students, expanding traditional ED models that often overlook the experiences of marginalized groups. Racial trauma may be a unique stressor that may lead to the use of disordered eating behaviors as a coping mechanism. Our findings emphasize the crucial need for culturally sensitive screening tools and treatment approaches that assess the impact of racial trauma to mitigate mental health disparities. Future research should investigate protective factors that may attenuate the relationship between racial trauma and ED risk.