ems, including negative body image, which has a close association with weight, perfectionism and depression. Family and socialization also play significant roles. It has been found, for instance, that mothers with girls with eating disorders are often critical of their daughters' weight and physical appearance. Complication, overprotectiveness, rigidity and lack of conflict resolution also often characterize families with adolescents who have eating disorders. This is connected to the "control" issue mentioned previously. Interestingly enough, girls who are more involved in mixed-sex social activities and dating boys are also more likely to exhibit disordered eating tendencies. (Attie and Brooks-Gun, pp.70-71). Thus, eating disorders must be studied in the context of what certain individuals face during their developmental stage, or what they may have suffered in childhood. In general, a combination of the pubertal phase of the female body, the loosening of the individual's ties to parents, and the development of a stable and cohesive personality structure play profound roles in this process. Prepubescent girls who perceive themselves as underweight are most satisfied while the opposite occurs for those who are overweight or perceive themselves to be such. Aside from the pubertal changes that the authors found significant in this issue, family relationships were also detected to influence the emergence of eating disorders. Families that set high standards for achievement gave little support for autonomy, and blurred interpersonal boundaries left adolescent girls with deficits in their self-esteem. (Attie and Brooks-Gun, p.71) Once again, as mentioned earlier, it makes sense in a very complex way that young girls who have been abused in this way end up "controlling" things that are ultimately not good for them. For instance, a young girl who was made to feel powerless in some ways in her family (i.e. sexual or physical abuse) may end up ...