An Investigation of the Influence of Dieting and Self-Esteem on Dietary Disinhibition.

Recent research on the eating behavior of restrained eaters following a dietary preload indicates that both dieting and self-esteem may influence consumption. While Policy, Heatherton, and Herman (Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 97, 354–356, 1988) found a forced preload to lead to increased consumption by low self-esteem restrained eaters, Lowe, Whitlow, and Bellwoar (International Journal of Eating Disorders, 10, 461–471, 1991) found restrained dieters to decrease their consumption following a dietary preload. The current study was designed to investigate the influences of self-esteem and dieting on the eating behavior of restrained eaters while in a negative mood state. Subjects were 80 normal weight undergraduate women in a 2 × 2 × 2 design (Restrained/Unrestrained by Success/ Failure by Low Self-Esteem/High Self-Esteem). Current dieting, though not self-esteem, was found to influence consumption. Restrained dieters consumed significantly less in a negative mood state than when in a positive mood state, while nondieters, irrespective of restraint status, consumed comparable amounts in both mood states. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]