Executive functioning and spatial processing in anorexia nervosa: an experimental study and its significance for the allocentric lock theory

Ravid Lander, Eyal Heled, Eitan Gur

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

13 Scopus citations

Abstract

Purpose: The allocentric lock theory (ALT) suggests that people with eating disorders have difficulties in multisensory integration in two reference frames—egocentric and allocentric, whereby the egocentric, but not allocentric, is impaired. This leads to a distorted body image that contributes to the development and maintenance of the disorder. The current study aimed to explore a facet of the ALT, namely, the visuo-spatial aspect, and its relation to cognitive flexibility in patients with anorexia nervosa (AN). Methods: Fifty-five participants took part in the study: 20 AN patients and 35 controls, matched by age and education. The object perspective taking test (OPTT) and the mental rotation test (MRT), tapping egocentric and allocentric representations, respectively, and a set-shifting task were administered. The brief symptom inventory was used to measure overall levels of distress. Results: AN patients showed higher level of distress. They performed poorer on the OPTT and set-shifting task but not on the MRT. The OPTT and MRT were correlated for controls but not for AN patients, while the set-shifting task and body mass index were associated with the OPTT but not with the MRT for the AN patients. Conclusions: The findings support the ALT by demonstrating impaired visual egocentric representations and intact allocentric visual functions in AN patients, with cognitive flexibility associated only with the egocentric frame. Therefore, egocentric frame impairment in AN patients may be influenced by visual perception and cognitive flexibility deficiency. Level of evidence: Level III: case-control analytic study.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1039-1047
Number of pages9
JournalEating and Weight Disorders
Volume25
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Aug 2020
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Allocentric frame
  • Allocentric lock theory
  • Anorexia nervosa
  • Cognitive flexibility
  • Egocentric frame

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Clinical Psychology
  • Psychiatry and Mental health

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