Eating disorders (ED) are complex psychiatric disorders associated with high morbidity and mortality. Medical complications are relatively frequent and may involve all organs and systems, and although most remit when a regular food intake and/or a normal body weight are resumed, others are severe enough to cause the death of the individual. Despite this relevance for public health, there is no conclusive knowledge about their etiopathogenesis. Current diagnostic criteria are unable to address all clinical presentations of these syndromes, since they are focused on eating-related psychopathology and miss the presence of general psychopathological symptoms, which have been shown to have a central role in the disorders. Moreover, although social processes and connection with others have been recognized to be a cornerstone of clinical recovery, they are rarely considered in the therapeutic planning. This chapter reviews the recent literature on emerging issues related to the etiopathogenetic risk factors, focusing especially on reward processes. Psychopathology and diagnostic problems are addressed through the illustration of new methodological approaches such as the network analysis and the staging model. Finally, we consider the impact of an ED on interpersonal functioning of close others, parents, partners, and siblings of the individual with an ED.