From Mental Fatigue to Binge Eating: Emotion Dysregulation as a Transdiagnostic Bridge

Abstract Background Binge eating and binge-eating disorder (BED) have been closely linked to emotion dysregulation and ADHD symptoms, whereas mental fatigue has received comparatively limited direct attention. The relative importance and interplay of these self-regulatory processes remain poorly understood. Network analysis offers a framework for identifying central and bridging processes within complex symptom systems. Methods In a psychiatric outpatient sample ( N = 279), binge-eating severity, mental fatigue, emotion regulation difficulties, and ADHD symptoms were examined using a regularized partial correlation network. Binge-eating severity was modeled as a continuous variable for network and mediation analyses; established cutoff scores were additionally used for descriptive group comparisons. Centrality and bridge metrics were estimated, network stability was evaluated, and a theory-informed exploratory mediation analysis was conducted. Results Binge-eating severity was not among the most central nodes in the network but occupied a bridging position between emotional and cognitive symptom domains. Mental fatigue showed the strongest associations with binge-eating severity and occupied a prominent bridging position across symptom communities. Descriptive group comparisons indicated moderate-to-large effect sizes (η²H = 0.152–0.359), with mental fatigue showing the largest between-group differences. Within emotion regulation, strategy deficits, difficulties in goal-directed behavior, and impulse control problems were most central, whereas non-acceptance and emotional clarity were more peripheral. Mediation analyses suggested that the association between mental fatigue and binge-eating severity was partially accounted for by emotion regulation difficulties, but not by ADHD symptoms. Conclusions These findings suggest that binge-eating severity may be linked to co-occurring difficulties in mental fatigue and behaviorally proximal dimensions of emotion regulation. Mental fatigue may represent a clinically relevant and underexamined correlate warranting further investigation in assessment and intervention research targeting binge eating.