College Student Binge Eating: Insecure Attachment and Emotion Regulation

Because college students who have accomplished developmental tasks less effectively may be at risk for detrimental behavior such as binge eating, we examined emotion regulation as a mediator of attachment insecurity and binge eating. Based on undergraduate and graduate student responses to a Web-based survey (N = 381), structural equation modeling revealed that attachment insecurity and binge eating were associated and mediated by emotion regulation. Implications for college student counseling and development are discussed.