Further Validation for a Measure of Disordered Eating in an Independent Sample of Male and Female Elite Athletes: The Athletic Disordered Eating (ADE) Scale.

Fatt, SJ; Prnjak, K; Buckley, GL; George, E; Hay, P; Jeacocke, N; Mitchison, D

Further Validation for a Measure of Disordered Eating in an Independent Sample of Male and Female Elite Athletes: The Athletic Disordered Eating (ADE) Scale.

Fatt, SJ Prnjak, K

Buckley, GL George, E Hay, P Jeacocke, N Mitchison, D

Permalink

Publisher:: WILEY
Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Int J Eat Disord, 2025, 58, (2), pp. 400-410
Issue Date:: 2025-02

Open Access

Copyright Clearance Process

Recently Added
In Progress
Open Access

This item is open access.

Adobe PDF

Download Published versionAdobe PDF (463.67 kB)

View on publisher's site

View statistics

Full metadata record

Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Fatt, SJ
dc.contributor.author	Prnjak, K https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6152-5025
dc.contributor.author	Buckley, GL
dc.contributor.author	George, E
dc.contributor.author	Hay, P
dc.contributor.author	Jeacocke, N
dc.contributor.author	Mitchison, D
dc.date.accessioned	2025-04-23T03:11:33Z
dc.date.available	2024-11-14
dc.date.available	2025-04-23T03:11:33Z
dc.date.issued	2025-02
dc.identifier.citation	Int J Eat Disord, 2025, 58, (2), pp. 400-410
dc.identifier.issn	0276-3478
dc.identifier.issn	1098-108X
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/186966
dc.description.abstract	BACKGROUND: Elite athletes experience unique pressures and cognitions associated with disordered eating, which may not be appropriately captured by existing tools. The Athletic Disordered Eating (ADE) scale is a recently developed and first measure of disordered eating specifically developed and validated in current and former athletes. This study aimed to provide further validation for the ADE in an independent sample of elite athletes. METHOD: Participants were 237 elite athletes (M Age = 26.1, SDAge = 8.6; 75.9% female; 73.0% current athletes) participating in various sports across Australia and the United States. Participants completed an online survey including the ADE, demographic questions, and other measures of eating disorder symptoms (Eating Disorder Examination-Questionnaire Short-form, Clinical Impairment Assessment), and related constructs. Twenty-five athletes also completed a clinical interview to determine eating disorder caseness. RESULTS: The four-factor structure of the ADE from the original validation was confirmed. Further, the ADE demonstrated adequate measurement invariance across male and female current and former athletes; internal consistency for the total score and each subscale; convergent and discriminant validity; and criterion-related validity-with a score of 40 balancing sensitivity and specificity against other scales with established cut-offs for a likely eating disorder. The high-risk cut-off (ADE ≥ 33) had high sensitivity but low specificity in identifying eating disorder cases, as confirmed by the clinical interview. DISCUSSION: The ADE is a low-time-burden screening tool for disordered eating, validated in independent samples of diverse athletes. It should be considered for future use in screening, early identification, and monitoring treatment progress in elite athletes.
dc.format	Print-Electronic
dc.language	eng
dc.publisher	WILEY
dc.relation.ispartof	Int J Eat Disord
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1002/eat.24344
dc.rights	info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
dc.subject	11 Medical and Health Sciences, 17 Psychology and Cognitive Sciences
dc.subject.classification	Clinical Psychology
dc.subject.classification	3210 Nutrition and dietetics
dc.subject.classification	4206 Public health
dc.subject.mesh	Humans
dc.subject.mesh	Feeding and Eating Disorders
dc.subject.mesh	Female
dc.subject.mesh	Athletes
dc.subject.mesh	Male
dc.subject.mesh	Adult
dc.subject.mesh	Surveys and Questionnaires
dc.subject.mesh	Reproducibility of Results
dc.subject.mesh	Psychometrics
dc.subject.mesh	Australia
dc.subject.mesh	United States
dc.subject.mesh	Adolescent
dc.subject.mesh	Young Adult
dc.subject.mesh	Humans
dc.subject.mesh	Reproducibility of Results
dc.subject.mesh	Psychometrics
dc.subject.mesh	Adolescent
dc.subject.mesh	Adult
dc.subject.mesh	United States
dc.subject.mesh	Australia
dc.subject.mesh	Female
dc.subject.mesh	Male
dc.subject.mesh	Young Adult
dc.subject.mesh	Athletes
dc.subject.mesh	Surveys and Questionnaires
dc.subject.mesh	Feeding and Eating Disorders
dc.title	Further Validation for a Measure of Disordered Eating in an Independent Sample of Male and Female Elite Athletes: The Athletic Disordered Eating (ADE) Scale.
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	58
utslib.location.activity	United States
utslib.for	11 Medical and Health Sciences
utslib.for	17 Psychology and Cognitive Sciences
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Health
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Health/Graduate School of Health
pubs.organisational-group	University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Health/Graduate School of Health/GSH.Clinical Psychology
utslib.copyright.status	open_access	*
dc.rights.license	This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC 4.0). To view a copy of this license, visit https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
dc.date.updated	2025-04-23T03:11:31Z
pubs.issue	2
pubs.publication-status	Published
pubs.volume	58
utslib.citation.issue	2

Abstract:

BACKGROUND: Elite athletes experience unique pressures and cognitions associated with disordered eating, which may not be appropriately captured by existing tools. The Athletic Disordered Eating (ADE) scale is a recently developed and first measure of disordered eating specifically developed and validated in current and former athletes. This study aimed to provide further validation for the ADE in an independent sample of elite athletes. METHOD: Participants were 237 elite athletes (M Age = 26.1, SDAge = 8.6; 75.9% female; 73.0% current athletes) participating in various sports across Australia and the United States. Participants completed an online survey including the ADE, demographic questions, and other measures of eating disorder symptoms (Eating Disorder Examination-Questionnaire Short-form, Clinical Impairment Assessment), and related constructs. Twenty-five athletes also completed a clinical interview to determine eating disorder caseness. RESULTS: The four-factor structure of the ADE from the original validation was confirmed. Further, the ADE demonstrated adequate measurement invariance across male and female current and former athletes; internal consistency for the total score and each subscale; convergent and discriminant validity; and criterion-related validity-with a score of 40 balancing sensitivity and specificity against other scales with established cut-offs for a likely eating disorder. The high-risk cut-off (ADE ≥ 33) had high sensitivity but low specificity in identifying eating disorder cases, as confirmed by the clinical interview. DISCUSSION: The ADE is a low-time-burden screening tool for disordered eating, validated in independent samples of diverse athletes. It should be considered for future use in screening, early identification, and monitoring treatment progress in elite athletes.

Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item:

http://hdl.handle.net/10453/186966