Testing the validity of eating disorder diagnoses

Objective: This paper overviews the issue of validity testing for eating disorder diagnoses. Method: A variety of different approaches to validity testing are reviewed, with an emphasis on clinically oriented validity testing for the DSM-V. Results: Validators of eating disorder diagnoses are likely to vary in terms of their scientific and clinical utility. Given that the DSM-V is a clinical document, validators which provide predictive clinical information will be most useful. Conclusion: Clinicians and researchers alike may differ in their approach to validating eating disorder diagnoses depending on the purpose of the validation. 2007 by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.