Exploring the relationships of psychological characteristics and disordered eating behaviors with dieting among college students
Creators: name: Mandell, Allison
Publisher: name: No Publisher Supplied
Year: 2022

description: Adolescents and emerging adults are vulnerable to unhealthy dieting and disordered eating behaviors, yet little research has comprehensively explored these relationships. College students, in particular, are susceptible to dieting behaviors that may place them at risk for disordered eating. However, much of the prior research about dieting specifically focuses on weight loss rather than defining dieting more generally as an eating pattern. Additionally previous research has not comprehensively examined associations of dieting with psychological characteristics (like grit and impulsivity) and disordered eating behaviors (like purging behaviors, dietary restraint, and binge eating) among college students. Thus, to fill the gaps in the literature the objective of this study was to explore the relationships of psychological characteristics and disordered eating behaviors with dieting among college students. In a secondary analysis from a cross-sectional study, undergraduate college students from Rutgers University were recruited to complete an online survey that utilized reliable and valid instruments that assessed eating attitudes and behaviors (e.g., Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire, mindful eating, and binge eating) along with psychological (e.g., body satisfaction, impulsiveness, and grit) and sociodemographic characteristics. Participants were recruited from Rutgers University to complete a Qualtrics® online survey focused on eating attitudes and behaviors during the 2018-2019 academic school year. Descriptive statistics of all variables and stratified by dieters vs. non-dieters and gender were conducted. Frequency and percentages of types of diets followed by dieters stratified by gender were also performed. Independent t-tests for continuous variables and chi-square tests for categorical variables were performed to determine significant sociodemographic, weight status, disordered eating behaviors and psychological characteristic differences between dieters vs. non-dieters by gender. Effect sizes of these relationships were conducted using Cohen’s d and Cramer’s V. All analyses were performed in the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS), version 26.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL) with significance level set a priori at p &lt; 0.05. Out of 1792 participants (White 38.56%, 20.36±1.32SD years of age), 29.9% (n=536) reported following some form of a dietary regimen in the last year. The top four common diets followed in the last year were Vegetarian (13.05%), Lactose Free/Dairy Free (6.13%), Macronutrient/Calorie Count (4.57%), and Vegan (2.79%). Chi-square tests revealed women (30.74%, n=356) were significantly (p&lt;0.05) more likely to diet compared to men (28.39%, n=180). Independent t-tests showed dieters (n=536) were significantly (p&lt;0.001) more likely to have greater restraint eating, and eating, shape, and weight concerns compared to non-dieters (n=1,256) in both men and women with small to medium effect sizes. Both men and women dieters were also significantly more likely to engage in excessive exercise to control their weight and shape compared to non-dieters (2.36±1.72SD vs. 1.75±1.38SD, 7-point scale) and (1.66±1.17SD vs 1.49±1.03, 7-point scale), respectively. Additionally, women dieters were significantly more likely to engage in self-induced vomiting compared to non-dieters (1.23±1.03SD vs. 1.09±0.65SD, 7-point scale). Both men and women dieters were significantly less sensitive to mindful eating external cues compared to non-dieters (2.28±0.71SD vs. 2.43±0.73SD, 4-point scale),and (2.35±0.69SD vs 2.52±0.77SD, 4-point scale) respectively, and women dieters had significantly lower awareness in mindful eating compared to non-dieters (2.59±0.77SD vs. 2.75±0.76SD, 4-point scale). Lastly, women dieters placed significantly lower importance on their GPA compared to non-dieters (4.03±1.01SD vs 4.17±0.98SD, 5-point scale). There were no significant differences found between both men and women dieters and non- dieters when it came to body shape satisfaction, binge eating, grittiness, and impulsive behaviors. Findings suggest dieting is common among college students; and dieters may be at increased risk for disordered eating and some negative psychological characteristics. These findings emphasize the need for both colleges and universities to have an increased understanding of how psychological characteristics and disordered eating behaviors associate with dieting behaviors in young adults. Increasing awareness could help colleges and universities be more proactive, as well as enhance prevention and treatment strategies for both disordered eating and eating disorders.