A transcultural comparison of the eating disorder inventory in former east and West Berlin

The Eating Disorder Inventory (EDI) was used in a transcultural study of East and West Berlin clinical and nonclinical samples at a time when the two parts of the city were still strictly separated. East Berlin patients with anorexia nervosa scored significantly lower than their Western counterparts with regard to the majority of EDI scales. Furthermore, there was a lack of discriminant validity for the -East Berlin clinical and nonclinical samples. It was speculated that this deficit might reflect a lack of transcultural validity in the psychological constructs upon which the questionnaire is based. However, the study revealed some evidence of meaningful correlations with clinical parameters. Finally, evidence was presented supporting internal consistency of the subscales and convergent validity of the EDI with the Eating Attitudes Jest (EAT). © 1992 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.