Eating Disorders: What Coaching Managers Should Know

When I train managers as coaches I always warn them to respect the power of coaching questions and to recognize the possibility that what starts as an innocuous, business related conversation, may lead to the unveiling of a deeper issue. Coaching managers would be advised to develop at least a little insight into the signs of abnormal psychology. Consider for example, eating disorders.

The term eating disorder can apply to a variety of conditions but here we'll consider two of the better known: Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia Nervosa.

Anorexia Nervosa:

This condition is associated with a 'wrong' perception of body weight or shape. The sufferer will often perceive themselves as overweight and be fearful of putting on weight. Usually however, they would be deemed seriously underweight. Anorexia Nervosa is a very serious condition which can prove fatal.

Bulimia Nervosa:

The bulimia sufferer unlike the anorexic is normally within a normal body range but again will tend to have a distorted perception of body or size. The condition has had wide coverage in the media and is recognised by the pattern of binge eating followed by 'remedies' such as self-induced vomiting or taking laxatives.

A number of possible explanations for these disorders have been advanced:

Sociocultural Factors:

It is perhaps no surprise that these conditions are most prevalent in developed western societies that have an abundance of food and yet attach huge value to the notion of being slim. One study (Davies & Furnham, 1986) found that a research sample included significantly more people who wanted to lose weight than actually saw themselves as overweight. This suggests cultural pressure to achieve a certain body.

Psychological Factors:

Eating disorders tend to occur in young women. This may coincide with a loss of self-esteem which is often expereinced at the same time of life. There are, of course, different perspectives within the psychology field:

Behaviourist - suggesting that slimming becomes a habit
Psychoanalytical - suggesting that anorexia may be an attempt to suppress sexual impulses
Humanistic - suggesting the conditions are connected to family relationships

Family Factors:

Eating disorders could be connected to family factors such as an obsession with eating and weight or a history of obesity.

Biological Factors:

Recent research focusing on the hypothalamus has suggested a biochemical explanation for these eating disorders. However it is difficult to differentiate between cause and effect.

Irrespective of the cause signs of either Anorexia Nervosa or Bulimia Nervosa must be taken very seriously as the effect on the sufferer and their family can be devastating. Consider for example, the famous case of the Carter family who ended up launching an historic legal battle to compel their anorexic daughter Vicki to eat.

What would be the best advice for the coaching manager who uncovers these signs when coaching around day to day issues such as prioritisation or goal setting? My recommendation would be to focus on the main principles of coaching. Ask well-formed coaching questions that build awareness, responsibility and trust then listen attentively to the responses. This is highly unlikely to make things worse and may actually do quite a lot of good.

After that, it's a question of referring the coachee to the relevant professional. With this in mind, my recommendation is that coaching managers familiarise themselves with their organization's welfare procedure.