Loading…

Impact of military culture and experiences on eating and weight‐related behavior

Disordered eating behaviors and obesity are becoming increasingly common among United States military personnel. However, little research has explored the role of the military environment as it may influence the development of disordered eating among personnel. The present qualitative analysis exami...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of community psychology 2021-08, Vol.49 (6), p.1923-1942
Main Authors: Ferrell, Emily L., Braden, Abby, Redondo, Rachel
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Disordered eating behaviors and obesity are becoming increasingly common among United States military personnel. However, little research has explored the role of the military environment as it may influence the development of disordered eating among personnel. The present qualitative analysis examined beliefs about how military experiences affected eating and weight‐related behaviors. Military personnel who served within the last year and a year or more ago (n = 250) were recruited using Amazon's Mechanical Turk (mTurk). Data included in the present study consisted of participant responses to three open‐ended questions, analyzed by means of content and thematic analysis. Analyses yielded eight themes: eating extremely quickly, strict mealtime regimens, the pressure to “make weight,” food insecurity, difficulty after military, food quality/content, overeating behavior, and military superior maltreatment. The current study provides a preliminary examination of the role of the military culture and experiences in the development of unhealthy eating and weight‐related behaviors and offers suggestions for future research and interventions.
ISSN:0090-4392
1520-6629
DOI:10.1002/jcop.22534