Campus programming for National Eating Disorders Awareness Week: An investigation of stigma, help-seeking, and resource knowledge

This study investigated the effectiveness of on-campus programming for National Eating Disorders Awareness Week (NEDAwareness Week). The aim was to investigate the impact of a campus-wide, week-long series of psycho-educational and awareness programs designed for NEDAwareness Week. The study sought to determine whether students who attended programming, when compared to students who had not attended campus programming, would report (a) higher levels of help-seeking behaviors, (b) lower levels of stigma, and (c) greater knowledge of available on-campus resources for students experiencing body image issues and eating disorders. Results indicated that students who attended one-time intervention programs knew more about available on-campus resources for students experiencing body image issues and eating disorders than students who did not attend programming. The findings suggest that students who attended one-time intervention programs for NEDAwareness Week had higher levels of factual knowledge of available campus resources for body image issues and eating disordered behaviors than students who did not attend campus programming for NEDAwareness Week.

► The effectiveness of National Eating Disorders Awareness Week was explored.
► We examined changes in help-seeking, stigma, and knowledge of campus resources.
► Campus programming leads to increased knowledge of on-campus resources.