Disrupted embodiment: empirically assessing phenomenological accounts of anorexia nervosa

Hocking, Jessica E., Osler, Lucy and Rea, Michael C. 2026. Disrupted embodiment: empirically assessing phenomenological accounts of anorexia nervosa. Journal of Eating Disorders 10.1186/s40337-026-01768-7

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Abstract

Background Recent philosophical reflection on eating disorders has taken a phenomenological turn. These approaches have focused on the experiences of those with eating disorders, many taking as their focus bodily experience In this paper, after a brief overview of Lucy Osler’s phenomenological account of disrupted embodiment, we describe two studies that provide empirical support for phenomenological approaches to AN broadly, and Osler’s account more specifically. Method Participants included 220 undergraduate women as well as 138 women who self-identified as currently experiencing AN. Participants completed cross-sectional online questionnaires related to their disrupted embodiment, body dissatisfaction, drive for thinness, bulimic behaviors, eating disorder symptomatology, dieting behaviors, and impairment due to eating disorders. Results Results of hierarchical multiple regression analyses indicated that, with one exception, the Disrupted Embodiment Scale (DES) total score and its three subscales explained variance in eating disorder symptomatology, bulimia behaviors, and eating disorder-related impairment above and beyond body dissatisfaction and drive for thinness. Furthermore, results of four ANCOVAs indicated women who self-identify as experiencing AN reported higher levels of feeling this type of disrupted embodiment, their bodies as a hardship, as a threat, and as separate from their “selves” compared to undergraduate women, controlling for age and BMI. Finally, bifactor analyses in addition to the consistency of the subscale-specific results indicate that the DES may be best conceptualized as a unidimensional scale. Discussion Overall, results provide empirical support for phenomenological approaches to understanding anorexia, including Osler’s specific account.

Item Type:	Article
Date Type:	Published Online
Status:	In Press
Schools:	Schools > Global Humanities Schools > English, Communication and Philosophy
Publisher:	BioMed Central
Date of First Compliant Deposit:	30 September 2026
Date of Acceptance:	4 September 2026
Last Modified:	30 Sep 2026 14:45
URI:	https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/189918

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