Examining self-efficacy as a moderator of the relations between dimensional perfectionism and dietary restraint, binge eating, and binge drinking

Dimensions of perfectionism have been linked to the disordered eating and binge drinking in prior research, with evidence that they may be differentially related to these behaviors. Self-efficacy is conceptually related to perfectionism, as perfectionism represents the level at which an individual sets her goals, while self-efficacy represents the individual’s judgment of whether she may attain those goals. Few studies have considered self-efficacy as a possible moderator of the relations between dimensions of perfectionism and disordered eating/binge drinking. We considered how dimensional perfectionism and self-efficacy may interact to identify and predict engagement in these behaviors. Using an existing dataset of 406 female undergraduates, we investigated whether self-efficacy moderates the relations between dimensional perfectionism and disordered eating/binge drinking. Overall, self-efficacy was not supported as a moderator of the relations between dimensional perfectionism and disordered eating. However, it moderated the relations between one dimension of perfectionism and a measure of binge drinking.Master of Art