Amanda Lossef

Eating disorders, anxiety, and depression are psychiatric conditions that cause persistent and debilitating symptoms like chronic fatigue, pain, and impaired functioning, which can lead to poor quality of life and health complications. It is therefore important to conduct research to better understand how factors such as body image, self-worth, and health behaviors contribute to the risk of developing eating disorders and psychological distress. The current study analyzed data from 239 individuals who completed a 5-wave longitudinal study of stress and adaptation among young adults (M = 22.37; SD = 8.25). The present study used latent profile analysis to identify subgroups of individuals with varying levels of body appreciation, appearance and approval contingent self-worth, physical activity, sleep health, and alcohol use and examined how group membership prospectively predicted reported symptoms of eating disorders, depression, and anxiety one week later. The analysis supported a four-class model as the optimal representation of data (entropy = .852). Class 1 represented participants with high sleep quality, positive body image, and low alcohol consumption. Class 2 displayed low alcohol intake, but high reliance upon others' approval and appearance for self-worth, low body appreciation, and low sleep quality. Class 3 was characterized by higher alcohol use and moderate levels of other indicators. Class 4 represented the highest alcohol use and reliance upon others' approval. Racial identity and sexual orientation were significant predictors of class membership. Mental health outcomes significantly differed across classes, with better mental health outcomes aligning with higher body image, better sleep quality, and lower alcohol use. These findings will help healthcare professionals identify individuals who are more susceptible to eating disorders and psychological distress and would greatly benefit from mental health interventions.