The purpose of this study was to extend previous research by Faber et al. (1995) in which comorbidity (two or more disorders existing at the same time) was found between Binge Eating Disorder and compulsive buying behaviors in a clinical sample. Faber et al. explored whether a subset of impulse control disorders could be called \"compulsive consumption\" disorders. Participants in this study, 51 undergraduate, female students, aged 18-23, were obtained from the Introduction to Psychology subject pool at Rowan University. The subjects completed the Binge Eating Scale and Compulsive Buying Scale and a correlation was completed. The result was that a significant negative correlation was found between scores on the Binge Eating Scale and scores on the Compulsive Buying Scale. A higher score on the Binge Eating Scale indicated greater severity, whereas a lower score on the Compulsive Buying Scale indicated greater severity. The behaviors were not only likely to occur together, but also with the same level of severity. This finding further supports the possible link between compulsive consumption disorders. If such a subset exists, it may help to determine possible cause and treatment.
","abstract_html":"<p>The purpose of this study was to extend previous research by Faber et al. (1995) in which comorbidity (two or more disorders existing at the same time) was found between Binge Eating Disorder and compulsive buying behaviors in a clinical sample. Faber et al. explored whether a subset of impulse control disorders could be called "compulsive consumption" disorders. Participants in this study, 51 undergraduate, female students, aged 18-23, were obtained from the Introduction to Psychology subject pool at Rowan University. The subjects completed the Binge Eating Scale and Compulsive Buying Scale and a correlation was completed. The result was that a significant negative correlation was found between scores on the Binge Eating Scale and scores on the Compulsive Buying Scale. A higher score on the Binge Eating Scale indicated greater severity, whereas a lower score on the Compulsive Buying Scale indicated greater severity. The behaviors were not only likely to occur together, but also with the same level of severity. This finding further supports the possible link between compulsive consumption disorders. If such a subset exists, it may help to determine possible cause and treatment.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Clemente, Michele Z."],"institution":null,"degree_name":"M.A. in Applied Psychology and Mental Health Counseling","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":"Psychology","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Kerwin, Mary Louise"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2002,"date_issued":"2002-05-08T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2002-05-08T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T04:14:25Z","subjects":["Rowan University--Students; Compulsive eaters; Compulsive shopping; Women college students","Psychology"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://rdw.rowan.edu/etd/1418","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Kerwin, Mary Louise"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Clemente, Michele Z."]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2016-05-12T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Psychology"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["M.A. in Applied Psychology and Mental Health Counseling"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Rowan University--Students; Compulsive eaters; Compulsive shopping; Women college students","Psychology"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://rdw.rowan.edu/etd/1418"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["The purpose of this study was to extend previous research by Faber et al. (1995) in which comorbidity (two or more disorders existing at the same time) was found between Binge Eating Disorder and compulsive buying behaviors in a clinical sample. Faber et al. explored whether a subset of impulse control disorders could be called \"compulsive consumption\" disorders. Participants in this study, 51 undergraduate, female students, aged 18-23, were obtained from the Introduction to Psychology subject pool at Rowan University. The subjects completed the Binge Eating Scale and Compulsive Buying Scale and a correlation was completed. The result was that a significant negative correlation was found between scores on the Binge Eating Scale and scores on the Compulsive Buying Scale. A higher score on the Binge Eating Scale indicated greater severity, whereas a lower score on the Compulsive Buying Scale indicated greater severity. The behaviors were not only likely to occur together, but also with the same level of severity. This finding further supports the possible link between compulsive consumption disorders. If such a subset exists, it may help to determine possible cause and treatment.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["The correlation of compulsive buying and binge eating behaviors in female undergraduate college students"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Kerwin, Mary Louise"],"dc:creator":["Clemente, Michele Z."],"dc:date.available":["2016-05-12T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["The purpose of this study was to extend previous research by Faber et al. (1995) in which comorbidity (two or more disorders existing at the same time) was found between Binge Eating Disorder and compulsive buying behaviors in a clinical sample. Faber et al. explored whether a subset of impulse control disorders could be called \"compulsive consumption\" disorders. Participants in this study, 51 undergraduate, female students, aged 18-23, were obtained from the Introduction to Psychology subject pool at Rowan University. The subjects completed the Binge Eating Scale and Compulsive Buying Scale and a correlation was completed. The result was that a significant negative correlation was found between scores on the Binge Eating Scale and scores on the Compulsive Buying Scale. A higher score on the Binge Eating Scale indicated greater severity, whereas a lower score on the Compulsive Buying Scale indicated greater severity. The behaviors were not only likely to occur together, but also with the same level of severity. This finding further supports the possible link between compulsive consumption disorders. If such a subset exists, it may help to determine possible cause and treatment.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://rdw.rowan.edu/etd/1418"],"dc:subject":["Rowan University--Students; Compulsive eaters; Compulsive shopping; Women college students","Psychology"],"dc:title":["The correlation of compulsive buying and binge eating behaviors in female undergraduate college students"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Psychology"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["M.A. in Applied Psychology and Mental Health Counseling"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T04:14:25Z"}