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. 1994 Spring;17(1):7–23. doi: 10.1007/BF03392649

Activity anorexia: An interplay between basic and applied behavior analysis

W David Pierce, W Frank Epling, Peter B Dews, William K Estes, William H Morse, Willard Van Orman, Richard J Herrnstein
PMCID: PMC2733699  PMID: 22478169

Abstract

The relationship between basic research with nonhumans and applied behavior analysis is illustrated by our work on activity anorexia. When rats are fed one meal a day and allowed to run on an activity wheel, they run excessively, stop eating, and die of starvation. Convergent evidence, from several different research areas, indicates that the behavior of these animals and humans who self-starve is functionally similar. A biobehavioral theory of activity anorexia is presented that details the cultural contingencies, behavioral processes, and physiology of anorexia. Diagnostic criteria and a three-stage treatment program for activity-based anorexia are outlined. The animal model permits basic research on anorexia that for practical and ethical reasons cannot be conducted with humans. Thus, basic research can have applied importance.

Keywords: activity anorexia, physical activity, animal models, behavior analysis

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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