A multivariate analysis of psychological factors related to body mass index and eating preoccupation in female college students.

Using a composite questionnaire, we measured the degree to which preoccupation with eating and body mass index (BMI) are related to a series of psychological measures in a sample of female college students. Eating preoccupation was measured using a set of questions designed to be free of affective content. Thirty volunteers filled out the questionnaire; their height and weight were measured under standard conditions. Correlations showed that BMI was positively related to the variables Depression and Emotional Response to Environmental Stimuli, while Eating Preoccupation was most closely related to Anxiety. Principal components analysis revealed two factors, one containing measures of positive emotionality, and one containing Eating Preoccupation and measures of negative emotionality, with BMI loaded on both components. These factors reflect the relationship of BMI to measures of both positive and negative emotionality. Positive emotionality may be a reflection of activation of a neurobehavioral system, the behavioral facilitation system, while negative emotionality may be a reflection of activation of the behavioral inhibition system. The overweight women in this study appeared to have high levels of activation of one or both systems, while the underweight women appeared to have low activation of both systems. Approaches to the study of obesity in women should take into account the fact that positive emotionality, as well as negative emotions such as depression and anxiety, may be related to BMI, and that eating preoccupation appears to be a subset of overall anxiety.