Eating Behaviours

Question 0

Birch and Fisher

Answer 0

The best predictors of daughters eating habits were the mothers dietary restraint and their perception of the risks of the daughters becoming overweight

Question 1

Parental Modelling

Answer 1

Children observe their parents eating behaviour and learn from it

Question 2

Meyer and Gast

Answer 2

Surveyed 10-12 year old girls and found a significant positive correlation between peer influence and disordered eating

Question 3

Brown and Ogden

Answer 3

Consistent correlations between parents and their children in terms of snack food intake, eating motivations and body dissatisfaction

Question 4

Define media effects

Answer 4

We learn from the media about food and eating behaviour

Question 5

Becker

Answer 5

Gave 63 Fijan girls a questionnaire before 1995 on attitudes towards eating
Gave 65 Fijan girls a questionnaire after 1998 on attitudes towards eating following the impact of TV in Fiji
They found that there was a 12% increase in the number of women who vomited to control weight
This indicates a strong link between the exposure to Western ideals of thinness and changed attitudes towards eating

Question 6

Tapper, Horne and Lowe

Answer 6

Created a website called Food Dudes and tested the effects of the website and videos on primary school children
Large and long-lasting increases in fruit and vegetable consumption in children from 2-11 years of age
The greatest increases in consumption are shown by those children who are, at the start, the poorest eaters of fruit and vegetables
Long lasting changes to dietary patterns and further and vegetable consumption
Increases extended across a wide range of fruit and vegetable varieties
Effects are highly reliable, regardless of school location and social deprivation

Question 7

MacIntyre

Answer 7

Found the media have a major impact both on what people eat and also their attitudes towards certain foods.
However, they are limited by personal circumstances such as age, income and family circumstances
Thus, people may learn from the media about healthy eating but must place this information within the broader context of their lives

Question 8

Dornbusch et al.

Answer 8

Surveyed 7000 American adolescents 
Higher class females had a greater desire to be thin and were more likely to diet to achieve this that their lower class counterparts

Question 9

Goode et al

Answer 9

Used data from 2003 Scottish Health Survey

Income was positively associated with healthy eating

Question 10

Story et al.

Answer 10

Sample of American students
Higher social class related to greater satisfaction and lower rates of weight control methods such as vomiting

Question 11

Powell and Khan

Answer 11

Found that body dissatisfaction and related eating concerns and disorders are more characteristic of white women than black of Asian women

Question 12

Ball and Kenardy

Answer 12

Studied over 14 thousand women between the ages of 18 and 33 in Australia
For all ethnic groups, the longer the time spent in Australia the more women reported attitudes and eating behaviours similar to women born in Australia (acculturation effect)

Question 13

Mumford

Answer 13

Incidence of bulimia was greater among Asian schoolgirls than among their white counterparts

Question 14

Striegel-Moore et al

Answer 14

More evidence of a drive for thinness among black girls than among white girls

Question 15

Davis et al.

Answer 15

Self-monitoring studies

One hour before a binge, bulimic individuals had more negative mood states than one hour before a normal snack or meal

Question 16

Wegner et al.

Answer 16

Students recorded their eating patterns and mood states over a two-week period
Binge says were characterised by generally low mood compared to non-binge days
No difference in mood found before and after a binge
Low moods may make binge-eating more likely but do not alleviate the low mood state

Question 17

Garg et al

Answer 17

Observed food choices of 38 participants when watching an upbeat funny movie compared to a sad depressing movie
Participants were offered popcorn and seedless grapes throughout the films
Those watching the sad film consumed 36% more popcorn than those watching the upbeat film
Those watching the upbeat film ate far more grapes
People who feel sad or depressed want to jolt themselves out of the dumps so they eat foods that give them a sudden rush of euphoria
When participants were presented with the nutritional information prior to viewing, consumption of unhealthy food dropped dramatically

Question 18

Parker et al

Answer 18

Although chocolate has a slight antidepressant effect for some people when consumed as an emotional eating strategy it is more likely to prolong rather than alleviate the negative mood particularly if used repeatedly

Question 19

Restraint Theory

Answer 19

The restraint theory was developed by Herman and Mack (1975) as an attempt to explain the causes and consequences associated with the cognitive restriction of food intake. They suggest that attempting not to eat actually increases the probability of over-eating.

Question 20

Boundary Model

Answer 20

Hunger keeps intake of food above a certain minimum, and satiety works it keep intake below some maximum level. Between these two levels, psychological factors have the greatest impact on consumption. Dieters tend to have a larger range between hunger and satiety levels as it takes them longer to feel hungry and more food to satisfy them. In addition, restrained eaters have self-imposed desired intake. Once they have gone over this boundary they continue to eat until they reach satiety i.e. Beyond the maximum level imposed by their diet

Question 21

Wardle and Beales

Answer 21

Assigned 27 obese women to either a diet group, an exercise group or a non-treatment group for seven weeks.
The women were assed throughout under laboratory conditions.
Results showed that women in the diet condition ate more than women in the exercise and non-treatment groups.

Question 22

The Role of Denial

Answer 22

Research in cognitive psychology has shown that attempting to suppress or deny a thought frequently has the opposite effect, making it even more prominent. Wegner et al refers to this as the theory of ironic processes of mental control because it represents a paradoxical effect of thought control, i.e. denial often backfires.

Question 23

Soetens et al.

Answer 23

Divided into restrained and unrestrained eaters
Restrained eaters subdivided into those who were either high or low disinhibition
Those who tried to eat less but would often overeat (disinhibited) used more thought suppression and showed more rebound effect
Restrained eaters who tended to overeat try to suppress thoughts about food more often, but when they do, think about more food afterwards.

Question 24

Redden and Successful Dieting Theory

Answer 24

Redden suggests that the secret to successful dieting lies in the attention we pay to what is being eaten. He claims that people usually like experiences less as they repeat them. When it comes to dieting, this makes it harder to stick to particular regime. To overcome this, suggests Redden, instead of thinking ‘not another salad’, we should focus on the details of the meal. By focusing on the specific details of each meal, people get bored less easily and so are better able to maintain their diet.

Question 25

Redden (jelly beans)

Answer 25

Gave 135 people 22 jelly beans each, one at a time
As each bean was dispensed, information about it flashed onto a screen
One group saw general information e.g. Bean number seven
The other group saw specific flavour details e.g. Cherry flavour
Participants got bored faster if they saw general information

Question 26

ER: Media Effects (TV and Underweight Charcaters)

Answer 26

In the estimated 30,000 adverts seen by adolescents per year, approximately 23% of female characters are underweight

Question 27

ER: Hsu et al.

Answer 27

Thinness is gaining more value within the African-American culture, just as it has in the Caucasian culture

Question 28

ER: Isolated tribe in Peru vs. Those in cities

Answer 28

Pictures of thin, normal and plump girls shown to an isolated tribe in Peru
Preference was plump women
Those from the tribe who had moved to towns/cities preferred the thin women

Question 29

ER: Robinson et al.

Answer 29

Hispanic and Asian-American girls showed greater body dissatisfaction than white girls

Question 30

ER: Bemporad

Answer 30

Some modern Muslim societies limit the social behaviour of women according to male dictates; in these societies, eating disorders are virtually unknown
Freedom may be a sociocultural factor that predisposes the development of eating disorders in women

Question 31

Lateral Hypothalamus

Answer 31

Hunger increases as glucose levels decrease
A decline in glucose levels in the blood activates the lateral hypothalamus
The lateral hypothalamus is activated which produces feelings of hunger

Question 32

Ventromedial Hypothalamus

Answer 32

When glucose levels rise, the ventromedial hypothalamus is activated
The ventromedial hypothalamus produces feelings of satiation
This causes the person/animal to stop eating

Question 33

Neuropeptide Y

Answer 33

This is a neurotransmitter found in the hypothalamus

‘Turns on’ eating (research to suggest that more of NPY leads to more eating)

Question 34

Sakurai et al.

Answer 34

Sakurai et al. - Although the lateral hypothalamus plays an important part in eating it is not the body’s ‘eating centre’. It controls other things e.g. Sex drive and thirst. Eating behaviour seems to be controlled by neural circuits running throughout the brain rather than just in the hypothalamus

Question 35

Marie et al.

Answer 35

Marie et al. Genetically manipulated mice to prevent production of NPY but there was no subsequent decrease in eating behaviour

Question 36

Gold et al.

Answer 36

Gold - Damage to nerve fibres running through VMH also damages the paraventricular nucleus in the hypothalamus - damage to this alone causes hyperphagia. Damage to the VMH alone and not the paraventricular nucleus does not lead to overeating

Question 37

Wickens et al.

Answer 37

Wickens (2000) - When NPY is injected into the hypothalamus of rats, they immediately begin feeding, despite satiation

Question 38

Yang et al,

Answer 38

Yang et al. NPY is also produced by abdominal fat - this leads to a vicious cycle where NPY leads to more eating and then more fat cells are produced and this leads to even more NPY being produced and so on…

Question 39

Stanley et al

Answer 39

Stanley et al. repeated injections of NPY into the hypothalamus of rats produces obesity in just a few days

Question 40

Zald and Pardo

Answer 40

Provided physiological evidence to support the claim that the amygdala participates in the emotional processing of olfactory stimuli
Exposed healthy adults to aversive olfactory (different smells) whilst measuring blood flow to the amygdala through a PET scan
Unpleasant odours produces significant blood flow increases whilst pleasant odours did not
Increased blood flow to the amygdala is associated with subjective ratings of perceived unpleasantness of smell

Question 41

Rolls and Rolls

Answer 41

surgical removal of the amygdala in rats causes the animals to consume both familiar and novel (unfamiliar) foods indiscriminately. Amygdala intact rats would avoid novel foods.

Question 42

The amygdala

Answer 42

The role of the amygdala is thought to primarily be in the selection of foods on the basis of previous experience

Question 43

Inferior Pre-frontal Cortex

Answer 43

Receives messages from the olfactory bulb (part of the brain responsible for smell)
Odours influence the taste of food

Question 44

Kolb and Whishaw

Answer 44

Damage to the inferior pre-frontal cortex decreases eating because of diminished sensory responses to smell and taste

Question 45

Lutter et al

Answer 45

Lutter et al. - may not be under purely neural control. The body produces extra quantities of the hormone ghrelin in response to stress. This also boosts appetite lead in to increased comfort eating.

Question 46

Kluver-Bucy Syndrome

Answer 46

Kluver-Bucy syndrome - damage to the amygdala and inferior prefrontal cortex can explain the feeding abnormalities observed in this. Symptoms include increased appetite, indiscriminate eating and attempts to eat non-food items. Research suggests food cues no longer accurately represent their real reward value to the individual

Question 47

Zhang et al

Answer 47

mice who receive two copies of the gene for overeating (ob/ob) have defective genes for the protein lepton, injecting them with lepton made them lose weight (could be genetics not neural mechanisms)

Question 48

Stanford

Answer 48

His observations of chimpanzees in Tanzania demonstrated that after coming close to starvation, when they do manage a kill they to straight for the fattiest parts, rather than the tender, more nutritious flesh

Question 49

Gibson and Wardle

Answer 49

Provided evidence to support the importance of calories in the ancestral diet. The best way to predict which fruit and vegetables are preferred by four to five year olds was how dense they were in calories. Bananas and potatoes are more calorie-rich and more likely to be chosen by children

Question 50

Milton

Answer 50

Milton claims that it is unlikely that early humans could have secured enough nutrition from a vegetarian diet to evolve into the active and intelligent creatures they became.

Question 51

Garcia et al

Answer 51

Garcia et al. were the first to study taste aversion in the lab. Rats who had been made ill through radiation shortly after eating saccharin developed an aversion to it and associated their illness with saccharin

Question 52

Seligman

Answer 52

Claimed that different species evolved different learning abilities, something he called biological preparedness. This natural selection of differential learning bad occurred so that species have the ability to learn certain associations more than others, particularly those that help them to survive.

Question 53

Bernstein and Webster

Answer 53

Bernstein and Webster give patients a novel-tasting ice cream prior to chemotherapy and the patients acquired aversion to that ice cream. This has led to the development of the ‘scapegoat technique’ which involves giving cancer patients a novel food along with some familiar food prior to chemotherapy. The patient forms an aversion to the new food and not to the familiar, usual food.

Question 54

Sandell and Breslin

Answer 54

Sandell and Breslin screened 35 adults for the hTAS2R38 bitter taste receptor gene. Participants rated bitterness of various vegetables, some containing glucosinolates (toxic at high levels). Those with the sensitive form of the gene rates the glucosinolate-containing vegetables as 60% more bitter than those with the incentive form of the gene.