Stigmatized obese individuals tend to internalize the pervasive weight stigma which might lead to self-discrimination and increased psychopathology. While explicit and implicit weight stigma can be measured using self-report questionnaires and Implicit Association Tests (IAT), respectively, the assessment of self-discrimination relied solely on self-report. The present study sought to develop an IAT measuring implicit self-discrimination (SD-IAT) in samples of obese individuals with and without binge-eating disorder (BED). Seventy-eight individuals were recruited from the community and individually matched in three groups. Obese participants with BED, obese participants without BED (OB), and a normal weight control group without eating disorder psychopathology (HC) were assessed with the SD-IAT and other measures relevant for convergent and discriminant validation. Results revealed significantly higher implicit self-discrimination in the BED group when compared to both OB and HC. Furthermore, significant correlations were found between the SD-IAT with body mass index, experiences of weight stigma, depressive symptoms, and implicit self-esteem. Finally, implicit self-discrimination predicted eating disorder psychopathology over and above group membership, and experiences of weight stigma. This study provides first evidence of the validity of the SD-IAT. Assessing implicit self-discrimination might further increase understanding of weight stigma and its significance for psychosocial functioning among vulnerable obese individuals.

Objective: Weight bias internalization (WBI) is associated with eating disorder psychopathology and non-normative eating behaviors among individuals with overweight and obesity, but has rarely been investigated in prebariatric patients. Based on findings demonstrating a relationship between emotion dysregulation and eating behavior, this study sought to investigate the association between WBI and eating disorder psychopathology as well as non-normative eating behaviors (i.e., food addiction, emotional eating, and eating in the absence of hunger), mediated by emotion dysregulation. Method: Within a consecutive multicenter study, 240 prebariatric patients were assessed using self-report questionnaires. The mediating role of emotion dysregulation was examined using structural equation modeling. Results: The analyses yielded no mediational effect of emotion dysregulation on the association between WBI and eating disorder psychopathology. However, emotion dysregulation fully mediated the associations between WBI and emotional eating as well as eating in the absence of hunger. Further, emotion dysregulation partially mediated the relationship between WBI and food addiction symptoms. Discussion: Prebariatric patients with high levels of WBI are at risk for non-normative eating behaviors, especially if they experience emotion regulation difficulties. These findings highlight the importance of interventions targeting WBI and improving emotion regulation skills for the normalization of eating behavior in prebariatric patients.

Stigmatized obese individuals tend to internalize the pervasive weight stigma which might lead to self-discrimination and increased psychopathology. While explicit and implicit weight stigma can be measured using self-report questionnaires and Implicit Association Tests (IAT), respectively, the assessment of self-discrimination relied solely on self-report. The present study sought to develop an IAT measuring implicit self-discrimination (SD-IAT) in samples of obese individuals with and without binge-eating disorder (BED). Seventy-eight individuals were recruited from the community and individually matched in three groups. Obese participants with BED, obese participants without BED (OB), and a normal weight control group without eating disorder psychopathology (HC) were assessed with the SD-IAT and other measures relevant for convergent and discriminant validation. Results revealed significantly higher implicit self-discrimination in the BED group when compared to both OB and HC. Furthermore, significant correlations were found between the SD-IAT with body mass index, experiences of weight stigma, depressive symptoms, and implicit self-esteem. Finally, implicit self-discrimination predicted eating disorder psychopathology over and above group membership, and experiences of weight stigma. This study provides first evidence of the validity of the SD-IAT. Assessing implicit self-discrimination might further increase understanding of weight stigma and its significance for psychosocial functioning among vulnerable obese individuals.

Objective: Weight bias internalization (WBI) is associated with eating disorder psychopathology and non-normative eating behaviors among individuals with overweight and obesity, but has rarely been investigated in prebariatric patients. Based on findings demonstrating a relationship between emotion dysregulation and eating behavior, this study sought to investigate the association between WBI and eating disorder psychopathology as well as non-normative eating behaviors (i.e., food addiction, emotional eating, and eating in the absence of hunger), mediated by emotion dysregulation. Method: Within a consecutive multicenter study, 240 prebariatric patients were assessed using self-report questionnaires. The mediating role of emotion dysregulation was examined using structural equation modeling. Results: The analyses yielded no mediational effect of emotion dysregulation on the association between WBI and eating disorder psychopathology. However, emotion dysregulation fully mediated the associations between WBI and emotional eating as well as eating in the absence of hunger. Further, emotion dysregulation partially mediated the relationship between WBI and food addiction symptoms. Discussion: Prebariatric patients with high levels of WBI are at risk for non-normative eating behaviors, especially if they experience emotion regulation difficulties. These findings highlight the importance of interventions targeting WBI and improving emotion regulation skills for the normalization of eating behavior in prebariatric patients.