The effects of resolving to diet on restrained and unrestrained eaters: The ?false hope syndrome?

✍ Scribed by Polivy, Janet ;Herman, C. Peter

• Publisher: Wiley (John Wiley & Sons)
• Year: 1999
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 150 KB
• Volume: 26
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0276-3478
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1098-108x(199912)26:4<434::aid-eat9>3.0.co;2-0

✦ Synopsis

Objective: The persistence of dieters' weight loss efforts, despite repeated failures, suggests that there must be some interim reinforcement for dieting that sustains the behavior. We propose that self-change efforts capitalize on a "false hope syndrome," in which the initial commitment to change brings immediate rewards (largely improvements in selfimage), regardless of the eventual outcome. Method: Eighty female students chose whether they would attempt either to reduce their weight or to increase their study time over a 2-week period. A control group did not attempt self-change. Results: The effects of making a resolution to change differed for novice and veteran self-changers (nondieters and chronic dieters). Nondieters showed an immediate improvement in their mood and self-image after making a resolution, but this subjective improvement dissipated over the course of the study. Veteran dieters showed a mixed response, initially feeling both more depressed, yet more hopeful of success. Discussion: These results are discussed in terms of variations on the false hope syndrome for different kinds of individuals (novices and veterans).