Intrapersonal and interpersonal mechanisms that predict self-efficacy for eating and exercise among college women

According to the American Obesity Association (2005), obesity has become\ud a global epidemic. Although, several treatments and intervention programs have\ud been implemented in which individuals have successfully lost weight, research\ud shows that many of those individuals who do lose weight tend to lapse and regain\ud their weight. Thus, researchers are still questioning how we can get people to lose\ud and maintain their weight loss. One promising area considered the role of self-efficacy.\ud Self-efficacy has been shown to be a significant predictor of weight loss\ud and maintenance in obese individuals. The main study was designed to identify\ud important predictors of self-efficacy for eating and exercise. Specifically, this study\ud investigated two intrapersonal mechanisms (self-regulation strategies and food\ud cravings) and one interpersonal mechanism (social support for eating or exercise) as\ud possible predictors. Furthermore, examining whether self-efficacy for eating or\ud exercise operated as a mediator or a moderator between these predictor variables\ud and body mass index (BMI) was of particular interest. To explore these hypotheses,\ud data from 107 college women was analyzed. The primary findings suggested that\ud self-regulation strategies was a significant predictor of self-efficacy for eating and\ud exercise, and food cravings was a significant predictor of self-efficacy for eating.\ud Social support was not predictive of self-efficacy for eating or exercise. Finally,\ud results suggested that self-efficacy for eating and exercise did not operate as a\ud mediator or a moderator between any of the predictor variables and BMI.\ud Keywords: Self-Efficacy, Self-Regulation Strategies, Food Cravings, Social Suppor