Development and validation of the situational appetite measures.

Based on a system to categorize high-risk situations for relapse in addictive disorders, instruments were developed to assess cue strength and self-efficacy relevant to weight loss attempts. Two versions of the Situational Appetite Measure (SAM) were developed, one to assess urges to overeat in selected situations and the other to assess self-efficacy in controlling urges to overeat. In a sample of college student dieters and enrollees in commercial diet centers, the measures were found to be highly correlated, such that as consummatory urges increased, self-efficacy to control overeating decreased. High-risk situations were represented by five relatively distinct and reliable subscales: relaxation, food present, hunger, reward, and negative feelings. Low cue strength and high self-efficacy for controlling overeating in situations involving negative feelings predicted weight reduction among female dieters in treatment. The multidimensional nature of the SAM allows for differential prediction of eating behavior across situations.