Many universities conduct extensive research in the field of eating disorders. See the list below to find out more information about eating disorder treatment studies happening near you.

National Institute of Mental Health Database

The National Institute of Mental Health database consistently updates their page of featured eating disorder studies in the US that are currently recruiting participants.

CenterWatch Clinical Trial Database

The CenterWatch Clinical Trial database has a listing of eating disorder medical research trials that are actively recruiting patient volunteers. Search for you closest city to find more detailed information on a research study in your area. 

Stanford University School of Medicine

  • Eating Disorder Identification in California Middle and High Schools

Stanford University is conducting a focus group-based research project about eating disorder identification practices in California middle and high schools, seeking both educators and parents at various schools in CA. Participants will receive $40 for participating in a remote focus group via Zoom.

If you are interested in participating, please scan the QR code on the appropriate flyer below, OR reach out to Dr. Nina Shevzov Zebrun at nszebrun@stanford.edu.

Flyer for educators.

Flyer for parents and caregivers.

Para un volante en español, presione aqui.

  • Teen Health Study

Stanford University is conducting a study on teen health in hopes of informing healthy adolescent development and eating behaviors. We hope to use the results of our study to inform future eating disorder prevention programs. We are looking for families with daughters between the ages of 12-16 and parents who may or may not have experienced disordered eating in the past.

If you are interested in participating, we would love to include you in our work! Please email teenhealthstudy@stanford.edu or visit our website to learn more! You can also follow this link to the eligibility survey. For participant’s rights questions, contact 1-866-680-2906.

Click here to view the flyer.

  • Target Engagement of a Novel Dissonance-Based Treatment for DSM-5 Eating Disorders

Stanford University’s Eating Behavior Treatment study is currently recruiting Bay Area women age 18-34 to participate in one of two programs designed to improve functioning and reduce eating problems.

All participants can receive up to $305 for completing three assessments, including interviews, computer tasks, surveys, and two brain scans. Participants will be asked to attend one of two weekly one-hour groups for 8 weeks that are designed to improve functioning and reduce eating disorders.

Click here to view the flyer.

For more information, or to sign up for the study, please visit its website or email eatingbehaviortreatment@stanford.edu. You can find a listing for this study on the Stanford Medicine website.

  • Confirming the Effectiveness of Online Guided Self-Help Family-Based Treatment for Adolescent Anorexia Nervosa

Stanford University is conducting a study on virtual treatments for anorexia nervosa in adolescents.

Seeking individuals between the ages of 12-18, diagnosed with anorexia, currently living with their families. Participants will receive specialized treatment at no cost.

Click here to view the flyer.

For more information, or to sign up for the study, please email familytreatmeant@stanford.edu or call (650) 723-9182.

  • Confirming the Efficacy/Mechanism of Family Therapy for Children with Low Weight Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID)

Seeking participants ages 6-12 years with a diagnosis of ARFID to receive one of two specialized treatments at no cost to the families.

Children ages 6-12 with a diagnosis of Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) and their families are invited to participate in a Family-Based Treatment (FBT) vs. a manualized Non-Specific Care (NSC) research study through the Stanford Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. The study consists of 14 one-hour telehealth sessions in either treatment arm, along with required medical management, over the course of 4 months. Treatment will be provided by doctoral-level, highly skilled therapists.

Click here to view the flyer.

For more information, or to sign up for the study, please email arfidstudy@stanford.edu or call (650) 723-5521.

  • Family-Based Treatment Training Study for Therapists

Stanford University is conducting an NIH-sponsored study looking at how to best train therapists in delivering Family-Based Treatment for anorexia nervosa.

Currently seeking therapists in private practice who would like to be trained in FBT to participate in our FBT training study. Participants will be paid $100 and receive 1 CE credit upon completion of the study

Click here to view the flyer.

 

For a full list of all current studies, visit their site here.

Saint Mary's College California

  • Saint Mary’s College California has partnered with EDRCSV to advertise studies in the past, but is not currently listing any specific studies with us at this time.

University of California, San Diego

  • The University of California, San Diego currently has a number of active studies that are recruiting individuals with eating disorders, women who have recovered from eating disorders, and individuals who have never had an eating disorder.

For a full list of all current studies, visit their site here.

University of California, San Francisco

  • Do you want to participate in brain research? We are trying to learn if anorexia is linked to changes in the brain that impact decision-making. By studying young people with and without anorexia, we can learn more about decision-making and brain activity. This could lead to better treatments for people with anorexia. Individuals 14-18 years old are eligible. You DO NOT need to have anorexia to participate. See more at this link: https://edrcsv.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/BrainEx-Flyer.pdf.

University of Hertfordshire, UK

  • Effects of Inflexible Thinking Styles on Engagement in Treatment

Hello, my name is Shaunak Deshpande. I am a trainee clinical psychologist. As part of my doctoral training in clinical psychology at Hertfordshire University, I invite you to participate in my research exploring how flexibility in thinking can influence well-being and adherence to therapies.

The overall aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between flexibility in thinking, treatment adherence, and psychological well-being in individuals with a variety of diagnoses falling in the domain of compulsivity and known to be associated with inflexibility in thinking. For instance, obsessive-compulsive disorder, health anxiety, eating disorders, skin-picking disorder, or hoarding disorder. We are particularly interested in understanding how flexibility in thinking influences an individual’s ability to adhere to mental health treatments and how it may impact their overall well-being.

The study will involve inviting participants with a range of mental health disorders to complete a short (around 20-minutes) online cross-sectional survey. The questionnaires cover basic demographic information and topics related to the research question, including treatment adherence, psychological well-being, cognitive flexibility and personality traits. All data I plan to collect will be treated with the utmost confidentiality. All collected data will be anonymized. The project will be run in accordance with the research codes & conduct outlined by the British Psychological Society and Hertfordshire University research policies & procedures.

Read the flyer

Complete the research survey

For questions or more information, contact Shaunak Deshpande at s.deshpande@herts.ac.uk

University of Louisville

  • Online Relapse Prevention Study

Receive free treatment and help us create an evidence-based relapse prevention treatment! Participate in a PAID study at the University of Louisville EAT Lab! Join a clinical trial comparing two five-week online eating disorder relapse prevention treatments! Participants will complete a phone screening to determine eligibility. Eligible participants will complete online questionnaires, an app-based behavioral task, five weeks of online/phone treatment sessions, and four follow-up assessments. Participants can receive up to $200 in compensation in addition to $1200 of free treatment!

Individuals with current or past Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, or OSFED: Atypical AN are eligible who have been discharged from a higher level of care (inpatient, residential, partial hospital/day program, intensive outpatient) within the past four months!

Check out our website for more information or email us at onlinerelapsepreventionstudy@gmail.com! We will be recruiting until August 2023.

For more studies from this institution, visit their site here.

University of Southern California

Researchers at the University of Southern California (USC) are conducting a study to learn about the association between exercise behavior and eating disorders. The goal of this study is to use this information to help to assess problematic eating and exercise, and to better understand how eating and exercise behaviors may differ across different groups of people. Adults (aged 18-64) are invited to participate in this online study. Those who participate must be able to understand English, and to have access to the Internet to be able to complete study questionnaires. Participants will be asked to fill out questionnaires online that will ask questions about mental and physical health, and activities. To see if you qualify for this study, please follow this link:

https://ucsf.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_8wFEpjaNRUH52zH

For more information on the study, please contact Dr. Stuart Murray, DClinPsych., Ph.D. at (323) 442-4000, or at stuartmu@usc.edu.

The Eating Disorders Genetics Initiative (EDGI)

  • The Eating Disorders Genetics Initiative (EDGI) is an international research study designed to understand how your genes can influence your risk for developing an eating disorder.
  • The purpose of EDGI is to learn more about how genes influence risk for bulimia nervosa, binge-eating disorder, and anorexia nervosa. If you have ever had one of these three eating disorders, you can participate by taking this survey.

Find out more