Does the salience of possible selves mediate the impact of approach and avoidance temperaments on women's weight-loss dieting?

Abstract

a b s t r a c tThe salience of both a hoped-for thin self and a feared fat self was predicted to mediate the impact of respective approach and avoidance temperaments on weight-loss dieting (WLD). Further, that the mediation pathway from avoidance temperament and through a feared fat self would be stronger than that from approach temperament and through a hoped-for thin self. A convenience sample of 249 college women reported age, height and weight and completed measures of the salience of possible selves, concern for dieting and approach and avoidance temperaments. Bootstrap mediation revealed that only avoidance temperament exerted an impact on WLD through the salience of both possible selves. However, the mediation pathway through the feared fat self was stronger than that through the hoped-for thin self. The consequences for the research and prevention of unhealthy dieting and eating pathology in women are discussed.

Fear of self in eating disorders

“…For example, Mussap (2007) found that punishment sensitivity accounted for a significantly larger proportion of the variance in bulimic symptoms than did sensitivity to reward (though both were significant predictors). These results complement the findings of previously described studies finding that fear of the overweight self was more strongly related to eating pathology than the pursuit of thinness (Dalley, 2016;Dalley & Buunk, 2009;Dalley et al, 2012;. Other studies, however, have found the opposite pattern of results, that indicators of approach motivation were more relevant to eating pathology than indicators of avoidance motivation (Clarke, Ramoz, Fladung, & Gorwood, 2016;Dondzilo et al, 2017;Rodgers, DuBois, Frumpkin, & Robinaugh, 2018).…”

“…Again, the authors highlighted the important role of avoidance motivation and the fear of the overweight self, this time in terms of attitudes toward the body (Dalley, Pollet, & Vidal, 2013). Finally, it was found that both the salience of the feared overweight self and the hoped for thin self were both significant mediators in the relationship between avoidance temperament and dieting, though the pathway through the feared overweight self was stronger (Dalley, 2016). Taken together, these studies suggest that fear of self may be more influential in motivating eating FEAR OF SELF IN EATING DISORDERS 9 attitudes and behaviours than the pursuit of an idealized thin self.…”

“…Continued research examining fear of self using both analogue and clinical samples as well as different types of measures and study designs is necessary in order to develop a more complete understanding of the role of this construct in EDs. Most research examining the fear of self in EDs has consistently found an association between fear of self and dieting in non-clinical samples (Dalley, 2016;Dalley & Buunk, 2009;Dalley et al, 2012). However, as described above, only one (Wilson et al, 2017) of two studies examining this construct in a clinical sample has found a link with ED symptoms.…”

How Content Valence and Online Impression Influence Goal Achievement in Social Media Environment?

“…An extensive amount of research exists on the theory of approach-avoidance motivation and its application in goal achievement (e.g., Dalley, 2016;Previte, Russell-Bennett, & Parkinson, 2015). The achievement goals are classified into three types: (a) mastery goals, (b) performance-approach goals and (c) performance-avoidance goals (Elliot et al, 2016).…”

Why Dieters Succeed or Fail: The Relationship Between Reward and Punishment Sensitivity and Restrained Eating and Dieting Success

“…High punishment sensitive (PS) individuals might be more sensitive to the punishing consequences of overeating such as becoming fat, and might therefore be more likely to engage in attempts to restrict their food intake to prevent undesirable outcomes ( Jappe et al, 2011 ). Indeed higher PS has been found to relate to a stronger fear of becoming fat and more concern for dieting ( Dalley, 2016 ), and PS was found to be higher in individuals with anorexia nervosa who are characterized by extreme food restriction ( Harrison et al, 2010 ; Jonker et al, 2020 ). Furthermore, positive associations have been found between PS and restrained eating as measured with the Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire (DEBQ; van Strien et al, 1986 ) and as measured with the Restraint Scale ( Herman and Polivy, 1975 ) in both adolescents and young adults ( Ahern et al, 2010 ; Matton et al, 2013 ; Jonker et al, 2016a ; Matton et al, 2017b ).…”