Weight Attitudes Predict Eating Competence among College Students

Eating competence (EC) includes diet quality, eating attitudes, food acceptance, internal regulation, and skills such as meal planning and preparation. The purpose of this research was to determine which factors were more predictive of EC in college students: their body mass index (BMI) or attitude...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Family and consumer sciences research journal 2010-12, Vol.39 (2), p.184-193
Main Authors: Clifford, Dawn, Keeler, Linda A., Gray, Kathy, Steingrube, Andrew, Morris, Michelle Neyman
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Attitudes
Body Image
Body mass index
Body Weight
College Students
Competence
eating competence
Health behavior
Prediction
Regression analysis
Weight
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:Eating competence (EC) includes diet quality, eating attitudes, food acceptance, internal regulation, and skills such as meal planning and preparation. The purpose of this research was to determine which factors were more predictive of EC in college students: their body mass index (BMI) or attitude about their weight. A convenience sample of 1,720 students from a large state university completed an Internet survey that included the validated Eating Competence Satter Inventory (ecSI). A multiple regression showed that weight satisfaction and desire to lose weight were better predictors of EC than BMI. These results suggest that interventions to increase EC and overall health and well‐being among college students should aim to improve body image and size acceptance.
ISSN:1077-727X
1552-3934
DOI:10.1111/j.1552-3934.2010.02056.x