De invloed van bewust en onbewust negatief affect op ongezond snackgedrag

Abstract

Statements about the underlying mechanism of emotion induced eating can be divided into two different views. Emotional eating can be seen as a lack of self control (automatic/unintentional reaction) or as an affect regulation strategy (well-considered/cognitive based reaction). The following question is answered: What is the effect of an unconscious and conscious negative affect on unhealthy eating behavior? Sixtyfour women participated and were divided into the conditions 'subliminal', 'supraliminal' and 'conscious'. A negative affect was induced by negative loaded pictures. The dependent variable is 'eating behavior', measured by the amount of snacks participants consumed. The results showed no significant difference between the conditions in eating behavior. In consequence, this investigation does not tell whether emotion induced eating is the result of a lack of self control or affect regulation. Possible explanations are the lack of negative affect and/or the mediation of a third variable. Methodological limitations are the absence of a control group and funnel debriefing, and the lack of external validity.