Why do women engage in fat talk? Examining fat talk using Self-Determination Theory as an explanatory framework

Examining fat talk and self-compassion as distinct motivational processes in women’s eating regulation: A self-determination theory perspective

“…In the negative pathway, extrinsic goals were positively associated with fat talk, whereas intrinsic goals were negatively associated with fat talk, suggesting that the more importance women placed on health goals, the less they engaged in fat talk. This result was also demonstrated in Guertin et al’s model (2017); however, the novel findings of this study lie in the positive pathway. In the positive pathway, intrinsic goals were positively associated with self-compassion, which was positively associated with contextual self-determined motivation for eating.…”

“…The goal of this study was to build upon the results of Guertin et al (2017) by examining a negative and a positive pathway to eating regulation. In the Guertin et al (2017) study, it was demonstrated that extrinsic goals were positively associated with fat talk which, in turn, were positively associated with contextual non-self-determined motivation for eating and unhealthy eating behaviors. In opposition, intrinsic goals were non-significantly associated with fat talk, but instead, were positively associated with contextual self-determined motivation for eating, which was negatively associated with unhealthy eating behaviors.…”

“…Finally, since body mass index (BMI) has been previously associated with fat talk and self-compassion (e.g. Engeln-Maddox and Salk, 2014; Guertin et al, 2017; Taylor et al, 2015), it was expected that BMI would be positively associated with fat talk and negatively associated with self-compassion.…”

“…healthy eating) and non-self-determined motivation is generally associated with less favorable outcomes, for example, bulimic symptoms (Otis and Pelletier, 2008; Pelletier and Dion, 2007; Pelletier et al, 2004). Along with this reasoning, in Guertin et al’s (2017) study, it was demonstrated that women who put more emphasis on appearance goals were more likely to engage in fat talk (i.e. negative conversations about one’s or other women’s bodies and/or weight), which, in turn, was positively associated with contextual non-self-determined motivation for eating and unhealthy eating behaviors.…”

“…When experiencing negative feelings about one’s body and/or eating behaviors, individuals engage in fat talk in order to receive external validation or re-affirmation that their bodies are appealing (Shannon and Mills, 2015). In this study, our objective was to build upon the model proposed by Guertin et al (2017) by examining a more positive pathway to eating regulation. Since their study exclusively focused on examining why women engaged in a negative coping strategy (i.e.…”