Eating beyond satiety and body mass index.

OBJECTIVE: To examine discrete eating behaviours as predictors of body mass and psychological processes through which these behaviours might lead to increased body mass.
METHOD: Three hundred and twenty-nine undergraduate females filled out questionnaires on eating beyond satiety (EBS), snacking, night eating, and hunger as well as the process variables--eating expectancies and self-reported cue reactivity--in an online study. The eating behaviours were regressed on body mass index and mediation analyses were conducted for the process variables.
RESULTS: EBS was the strongest predictor of body mass when the other eating behaviours were controlled. The process variables did not mediate the relationship between EBS and body mass. DISCUSSION: EBS may be a discrete variable on which to intervene to prevent and treat overweight and obesity. Further research is needed to elucidate the situational and affective antecedents of EBS.