The concept of emotional eating is well known within the general public and has been given scientific consideration as well. However, there has been little work focusing on emotional eating from the perspective of attachment theory. Attachment theory posits that the social and emotional bonds an individual forms with his/her caregiver as an infant lead to the development of an attachment style, which influences how an individual perceives them self, others and social interactions. Distinct emotion regulation strategies also underlie attachment styles. Given the social and emotional nature of eating, it is probable that eating behavior can be influenced by attachment style. The following dissertation explored the relationships between attachment anxiety and avoidance and emotional eating. Study 1 established a connection between self reported attachment anxiety and emotional eating, but not attachment avoidance. This association was mediated by perceived hunger. Study 2 revealed that individuals who reported higher levels of attachment anxiety tended to eat more unhealthy food (potato chips) but not healthy food. Study 3 explored the processes underlying the relationship between attachment anxiety and eating after ostracism. Study 4 involved an intervention to suppress emotional eating.
Subject (authority = RUETD)
Topic
Psychology
RelatedItem (type = host)
TitleInfo
Title
Rutgers University Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Identifier (type = RULIB)
ETD
Identifier
ETD_4891
PhysicalDescription
Form (authority = gmd)
electronic resource
InternetMediaType
application/pdf
InternetMediaType
text/xml
Extent
viii, 124 p. : ill.
Note (type = degree)
Ph.D.
Note (type = bibliography)
Includes bibliographical references
Note (type = vita)
Includes vita
Note (type = statement of responsibility)
by Katherine E. Alexander
Subject (authority = ETD-LCSH)
Topic
Eating disorders
Subject (authority = ETD-LCSH)
Topic
Attachment disorder
Subject (authority = ETD-LCSH)
Topic
Psychology, Pathological
RelatedItem (type = host)
TitleInfo
Title
Graduate School - Newark Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Identifier (type = local)
rucore10002600001
Location
PhysicalLocation (authority = marcorg); (displayLabel = Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey)
I hereby grant to the Rutgers University Libraries and to my school the non-exclusive right to archive, reproduce and distribute my thesis or dissertation, in whole or in part, and/or my abstract, in whole or in part, in and from an electronic format, subject to the release date subsequently stipulated in this submittal form and approved by my school. I represent and stipulate that the thesis or dissertation and its abstract are my original work, that they do not infringe or violate any rights of others, and that I make these grants as the sole owner of the rights to my thesis or dissertation and its abstract. I represent that I have obtained written permissions, when necessary, from the owner(s) of each third party copyrighted matter to be included in my thesis or dissertation and will supply copies of such upon request by my school. I acknowledge that RU ETD and my school will not distribute my thesis or dissertation or its abstract if, in their reasonable judgment, they believe all such rights have not been secured. I acknowledge that I retain ownership rights to the copyright of my work. I also retain the right to use all or part of this thesis or dissertation in future works, such as articles or books.