Taking action to lose weight: toward an understanding of individual differences
Document Type
Article
Keywords
Treatment-seeking; Help-seeking; Predictors; Obesity; Dieting
Disciplines
Psychology | Social and Behavioral Sciences
Abstract
The purpose of the present study was to understand differences in obese/overweight individuals who do and do not seek ongoing external assistance for weight loss. Help-seeking was examined as a dichotomous and as a continuous variable. Measures of body mass index, comorbid medical conditions, socioeconomic status, psychological distress, disordered eating behavior, body image, and obesity-related knowledge were administered to a community sample of 120 overweight women (age: 22–65 y, BMI: 25–63 kg/m2). Fewer predictors of help-seeking were identified when measuring help-seeking as a dichotomy than when measuring it as a continuum. All predictors were from psychosocial domains, with obesity-related knowledge being the strongest, most consistent predictor. Help-seeking for weight control in a community sample of overweight and obese individuals appears to be motivated by psychological aspects of obesity, rather than obesity's physical or medical burden.
Article Number
1174
Publication Date
2007
Recommended Citation
Annunziato, R.A. & Lowe, M.R. (2007). Taking action to lose weight: toward an understanding of individual differences. Eating Behaviors, 8(2), 185-194.
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