This article examines the extent to which self-reported emotional eating is a predictor of unhealthy snack consumption or, alternatively, an expression of beliefs about the relation between emotions ...and eating derived from concerns about eating behaviour. Three studies were conducted. Study 1 (N = 151) and Study 2 (N = 184) investigated the predictive validity of emotional eating compared to habit strength in snack consumption, employing 7-day snack diaries. Both studies demonstrated that snack consumption was not predicted by emotional eating but depended on the habit of unhealthy snacking and on restraint eating. As emotional eating was not a significant predictor of snack intake, Study 3 addressed the alternative hypothesis of emotional eating being an expression of concerns about eating behaviour. Results from this cross-sectional survey (N = 134) showed that emotional eating was significantly associated with several concerns. Together, these studies show that snack intake is better predicted by habit strength and restraint eating than by emotional eating. Additionally, the results suggest that in normal-weight women the concept of emotional eating may not capture the tendency to eat under emotional conditions, but rather reflects beliefs about the relation between emotions and eating.
Implementation intentions specifying the replacement of a habitual response with an alternative response in a critical situation can overrule habits. In three experiments the cognitive effects of ...such counterhabitual implementation intentions were investigated. Results showed that implementation intentions eliminated the cognitive advantage of the habitual means in the “horse race” with the alternative response. That is, in the control condition, the habitual means was more accessible than the alternative means on encountering the critical situation, but this was no longer the case when implementation intentions were formulated. However, the cognitive advantage of the habitual means was not immediately replaced by an automatic activation of the alternative means. This suggests that formulating counterhabitual implementation intentions increases individuals’ flexibility to choose which behavior to perform in the critical situation but that actual behavior will depart from their habits only to the extent that individuals have strong alternative goal intentions.
Assessing Yourself as an Emotional Eater Evers, Catharine; de Ridder, Denise T. D; Adriaanse, Marieke A
Health psychology,
11/2009, Volume:
28, Issue:
6
Journal Article
Peer reviewed
Objective:
The extent to which individuals are emotional eaters has typically been assessed by people's self-reported desire to eat when they experience negative emotions. Elevated scores on these ...emotional eater scales have been associated with eating pathology and obesity. However, evidence that individuals scoring high on these scales truly increase their food intake during emotional encounters is inconclusive. The current studies tested whether emotional eater scales capture the proposed tendency to eat when feeling emotional.
Design:
In four experiments with different emotion induction procedures, female participants were randomly assigned to negative emotion or control conditions. In the control conditions positive or no emotions were induced. Next, food consumption was assessed by bogus taste tests.
Main Outcome Measures:
Emotional eater status, emotional experience, and actual consumption of different food types.
Results:
Individuals describing themselves as emotional eaters did not increase food intake during emotional encounters as compared to control conditions or individuals not judging themselves as emotional eaters.
Conclusion:
The results suggest that self-reported emotional eaters do not increase food intake during emotional encounters in the laboratory. Implications of these findings are discussed, including the idea that it may be complex to adequately assess one's own emotional eating behavior.
Full text
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CEKLJ, FFLJ, NUK, ODKLJ, PEFLJ
The potential of using implementation intentions—action plans that link a critical situational cue to a specific goal-directed behavior—to bridge the intention–behavior gap in consumer behavior has ...been limited by the practice of using explicit instructions to induce the construct. In two studies, we therefore tested the effectiveness of an indirect, persuasive strategy that benefits from the positive consequences of implementation intentions by ‘mimicking’ their underlying psychological processes. Experiment 1 showed that a strategy presenting vivid information on critical cues and appropriate behavioral responses affected mental imagery. Experiment 2 demonstrated that this strategy affected actual purchase behavior.
► Implementation intentions have mainly been induced with explicit instructions. ► An indirect, persuasive strategy is tested that can also induce the construct. ► This strategy is most effective when using vivid information on cues and responses.
•We examined reasons for unhealthy snacking among a representative community sample.•A Reasons to Snack inventory was developed to assess a broad range of motives.•Six distinct motives were ...identified applicable to a large audience.•Enjoying a special occasion and opportunity induced eating were most important.•The findings emphasize the relevance of targeting these motives in interventions.
Investigating the reasons that people give for unhealthy snacking behavior is important for developing effective health interventions. Little research, however, has identified reasons that apply to a large audience and most studies do not integrate multiple factors, precluding any conclusions regarding their relative importance. The present study explored reasons for unhealthy snacking among a representative community sample. Participants (N = 1544) filled out the newly developed Reasons to Snack inventory assessing an elaborate range of motives at baseline and 1-month follow-up. Exploratory and replication factor analyses identified six categories: opportunity induced eating, coping with negative emotions, enjoying a special occasion, rewarding oneself, social pressure, and gaining energy. The highest mean scores were obtained for enjoying a special occasion and opportunity induced eating. Regression analyses with participant characteristics as independent variables and each category of reasons as dependent variables showed differences for age. For all reasons except to enjoy a special occasion, younger people reported a higher score. Women indicated a higher score than men on coping with negative emotions, enjoying a special occasion and gaining energy. People who diet to a stronger extent reported a higher score for snacking because of social pressure, to reward oneself and to cope with negative emotions, with the latter also being related to a higher BMI. Finally, a higher education was associated with enjoying a special occasion. Future health interventions could allocate more attention to diminishing unhealthy snacking with regard to the six identified categories, specifically focusing on enjoying a special occasion and opportunity induced eating.
Behavior change interventions can unintendedly widen existing socio-economic health inequalities. Understanding why interventions are (in)effective among people with lower socio-economic position ...(SEP) is essential. Therefore, this scoping review aims to describe what is reported about the behavior change techniques (BCTs) applied within interventions and their effectiveness in encouraging physical activity and healthy eating, and reducing smoking and alcohol consumption according to SEP.BackgroundBehavior change interventions can unintendedly widen existing socio-economic health inequalities. Understanding why interventions are (in)effective among people with lower socio-economic position (SEP) is essential. Therefore, this scoping review aims to describe what is reported about the behavior change techniques (BCTs) applied within interventions and their effectiveness in encouraging physical activity and healthy eating, and reducing smoking and alcohol consumption according to SEP.A systematic search was conducted in 12 electronic databases, and 151 studies meeting the eligibility criteria were included and coded for health behavioral outcomes, SEP-operationalization, BCTs (type and number) and effectiveness.MethodsA systematic search was conducted in 12 electronic databases, and 151 studies meeting the eligibility criteria were included and coded for health behavioral outcomes, SEP-operationalization, BCTs (type and number) and effectiveness.Findings suggest that approaches for measuring, defining and substantiating lower SEP vary. Current studies of behavior change interventions for people of different SEP do not systematically identify BCTs, making systematic evaluation of BCT effectiveness impossible. The effectiveness of interventions is mainly evaluated by overall intervention outcomes and SEP-moderation effects are mostly not assessed.ResultsFindings suggest that approaches for measuring, defining and substantiating lower SEP vary. Current studies of behavior change interventions for people of different SEP do not systematically identify BCTs, making systematic evaluation of BCT effectiveness impossible. The effectiveness of interventions is mainly evaluated by overall intervention outcomes and SEP-moderation effects are mostly not assessed.Using different SEP-operationalizations and not specifying BCTs hampers systematic evidence accumulation regarding effective (combinations of) BCTs for the low SEP population. To learn which BCTs effectively improve health behaviors among people with lower SEP, future intervention developers should justify how SEP is operationalized and must systematically describe and examine BCTs.ConclusionUsing different SEP-operationalizations and not specifying BCTs hampers systematic evidence accumulation regarding effective (combinations of) BCTs for the low SEP population. To learn which BCTs effectively improve health behaviors among people with lower SEP, future intervention developers should justify how SEP is operationalized and must systematically describe and examine BCTs.
Implementation intentions promote acting on one's good intentions. But does specifying where and when to act also suffice when goals involve complex change that requires not merely initiating a ...behavior but rather substituting a habit with a new response? In a pilot study and two experiments, the authors investigated the efficacy of implementation intentions to replace unhealthy snacks with healthy snacks by linking different types of cues for unhealthy snacking (if-part) to healthy snacking (then-part). The pilot study identified cues for unhealthy snacking, differentiating between situational (where/when) and motivational (why) cues. Studies 1 and 2 tested the efficacy of implementation intentions that specified either situational or motivational cues in altering snacking habits. Results showed that implementation intentions specifying motivational cues decreased unhealthy snack consumption whereas the classic specification of where and when did not. Extending previous research, for complex behavior change “why” seems more important than “where and when.”
Self-control relies on a limited resource that can get depleted, a phenomenon that has been labeled ego-depletion. We argue that individuals may differ in their sensitivity to depleting tasks, and ...that consequently some people deplete their self-control resource at a faster rate than others. In three studies, we assessed individual differences in depletion sensitivity, and demonstrate that depletion sensitivity moderates ego-depletion effects. The Depletion Sensitivity Scale (DSS) was employed to assess depletion sensitivity. Study 1 employs the DSS to demonstrate that individual differences in sensitivity to ego-depletion exist. Study 2 shows moderate correlations of depletion sensitivity with related self-control concepts, indicating that these scales measure conceptually distinct constructs. Study 3 demonstrates that depletion sensitivity moderates the ego-depletion effect. Specifically, participants who are sensitive to depletion performed worse on a second self-control task, indicating a stronger ego-depletion effect, compared to participants less sensitive to depletion.
Performing under high pressure is an emotional experience. Hence, the use of emotion regulation strategies may prove to be highly effective in preventing choking under pressure. Using a golf putting ...task, we investigated the role of arousal on declined sport performance under pressure (pilot study) and the effectiveness of emotion regulation strategies in alleviating choking under pressure (main study). The pilot study showed that pressure resulted in decreased performance and this effect was partially mediated by increased arousal. The main study, a field study, showed that whereas the choking effect was observed in the control condition, reappraisal and, particularly, distraction were effective emotion regulation strategies in helping people to cope instead of choke under pressure. These findings suggest that interventions that aim to prevent choking under pressure could benefit from including emotion regulation strategies.
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