1. Eating Behaviour 2. Mood Culture Social Learning Theory Attitudes to food 3. Mood and Eating Behaviour - Attitudes to food Explanation Some explanations of eating behaviour such as mood are used as a temporary escape from a negative mood such as sadness or anxiety. People turn to food consciously or unconsciously to deal with stress, a problem or just a low mood. Binge eating is when a person eats an excessive amount of food until uncomfortably full. This tends to be when a person is alone and before a meal time where they will consume a large amount of food regardless of whether they are hungry or not. By using this escape, a person is able to use food as a comfort to deal with feelings but later regrets what they have done leading to further upset. Comfort eating on the other hand is eating to compensate for a low mood in order to provide some what of an uplift. When a person is comfort eating, they tend to stick to high calorie, sweet and fatty foods as these provide a satisfying taste which is used to suppress negative emotions. Evidence Garg et al (Comfort eating) Observed food choices 38 participants watching a funny and sad film Participants were offered popcorn or grapes during the film Participants watching the sad film consumed 36% more popcorn whereas participants watching the funny film ate more grapes In a variation of this study, when nutritional information was given to participants beforehand, snacking dropped Evaluating studies Garg et al Using a real life situation (in a cinema) somewhat reflects normal day life Evaluating theory IDAs Reductionist Its only biological explanations, its objective Nature vs Nurture It supports nature saying that its innate but the nurture side explains that it depends on our environment as to how much we eat Free will its suggesting we do not have any control over what we eat which is false General Subjective non-scientific evidence High ecological validity eating is done in any setting so its normal Individual differences everyone copes with sadness differently, we don't all 4. Culture - Attitudes to food Explanation The factor of culture means it is dependant on our backgrounds as to what we find attractive in terms of body image. For example, a white person is more likely to have eating concerns compared to an Asian or black women. White women tend to find a slim women more attractive whereas a Black women wouldn't as they see that as a sign of malnutrition therefore see more plump women more attractive. Class also effects women's attitude to food. For example, body dissatisfaction if more commonly found in higher class individuals and are more likely to diet than lower class individuals as income is dependant on being able to afford the more expensive, healthier kinds of foods. Children in the UK are surrounded by food such as nuggets, pizza and chips whereas children in India grow up believing Spicer food if better for you. Evidence Ball and Kenardy Studied 14,000 women between the ages of 18-23 in Australia The longer time any ethnicity spent in Australia the more likely these people adopted the attitudes of women born in Australia This is known as the acculturation effect Evaluating studies Ball and Kenardy Only used Australian women Ethnocentric and gender bias Evaluating theory IDAs Gender bias Culture tends to focus on the woman's perspective of things and cannot be applied to both genders Eurocentric Its entirely based on culture, lacks generalizability Deterministic Each person is there own and has control of their own views of attractiveness which sometimes stray from the norm Reductionist Other environmental factors i.e mood can influence what you eat Nature vs nurture Environment has not been taken into consideration General Large sample size using variety of countries culture 5. Social Learning Theory - Attitudes to food Explanation Social Learning theory is when our behavior is learnt through observing those around us so our eating behavior is determined by the behavior of people we know. Modelling has an impact on our behaviour as we copy what others do whether this be media, family or parents. Personal circumstances such as income, age or family circumstances all influence this. Parental modelling is one way that eating behaviour is controlled. This is where children observe the habits of their parents and copy what they see them do. Parents tend to pick what food their child is eating and will often only buy foods that they like themselves. In this sense, children copy what their parents eat. Media can also influence children's eating behaviour. If a child is watching one of their favourite childhood characters eat a food they may not be so keen on, you may start to see that because the character they like is eating it, they also like it. Evidence Kotler Assessed the role of media characters in children's food choice Experiment one Children picked one particular food when it was associated with a character Experiment two Children were willing to try new food and character than new food and an unknown character When children were picking between healthy food and character and unhealthy food they picked the unhealthy one Evaluating Studies Kotler et al Social class might mean that children are used to trying new foods so are more likely to eat this despite the media character Evaluating Theory IDAs Reductionist Does not take into account alternate views such as culture in Nature vs Nurture Does not take into account their environmental factors for eating behaviour Free will We cannot hold the children responsible for their eating habits if their parents pick the food for them have little control over what they eat General 6. Restraint theory (Boundary Model) Role of denial Having a successful diet Success and Failure of Diets 7. Restraint theory (Boundary model) - Success and Failure of Diets Explanation Dieting is when you restrain yourself from eating as much. The restraint theory states that more often than not, when you diet, you are more likely to put on weight rather than take it off. This is due to the constant feeling of not being full therefore needing to eat more and tending to overeat. In doing this, more often than not diets fail as the person is never totally full. Evidence Herman and Polivy The boundary model was introduced by Herman and Polivy. The boundary model can explain why diets are not successful. When a person is on a diet and has already gone over their limit (i.e- more 1700 calories) the person therefore will give up for that day and just eat until they are full. This is because a dieter will have a larger range between hunger and satiety level. Because it takes longer for a person to feel full, they feel like they need to eat more than they would regularly. Evaluation studies The model is over generalising in assuming that all diets do not work due to us never being full yet some people do loose loads of weight on their diets. Evaluating theory IDAs The theory is too deterministic. We have free will over our food choices and what to or what not to eat therefore we cannot forget we have our own self control. The theory is also reductionist. It does not take into consideration biological factors that may encourage us to overeat such as an absence of leptin which would encourage overeating. General The treatment to overweight people is usually to restrain their eating habits yet the theory suggests that it causes overeating. Ogden proposed the question of how anorexics are still managing to stay Hunger Satiety Hunger Diet boundary Satiety 8. Role of Denial - Success and Failure of Diets Explanation The role of denial is the attempt to suppress or block a thought from your memory. However, the tends to work in the opposite way and makes us think about it more often making the problem more dominant in our memories. Applying this to dieting, dieters attempt to suppress the thought to eat certain foods that are seen as forbidden such as chocolate, crisps or sweets. In turn, the dieter therefore simultaneously sees the forbidden foods as more attractive and has increased motivation to eat it. Evidence Wegner Told the participants not to think about a polar bear but if they did then they should ring a bell The control group were encouraged to think a polar bear and also ring the bell when they did The results showed that those told not to think about a polar bear naturally thought about it more and rang the bell more times than those encouraged to ring it This was known as the theory of ironic processes of mental control which represents the effect of paranoia on thought control and how denial of one thing creates compulsion to have it Evaluating studies Low ecological validity as it is not in a natural setting to sit and told to think about something Evaluating theory IDAs Nature vs nurture no evidence for nurture and environment , theory only supports nature and that we naturally behave this way Gender Bias- The theory tends to support the women perspective as men do not tend to diet as much as women do General Some people are more strong willed than others so will naturally be more able to diet better than others 9. Having a successful diet - Success and Failure of Diets Explanation It has been suggested that the key to a successful diet is detail. If we pay more attention to what we put inside our bodies, we tend to get excited more to eat even the healthiest type of food which results in us eating healthier. By focusing on the detail, people do not become bored with the same boring salad and so are able tot maintain a better diet. Evidence Redden 135 participants were given 22 jelly beans one at a time with information about it Group ones information was more general i.e- bean number 7 Group twos information had more detail i.e- cherry flavour number 7 Participants from group one got bored more easily whereas group two found the task more enjoyable Evaluating studies The jelly bean is not a dieting food therefore cannot be applied to diets Evaluating theory IDAs Eurocentric research tends to be done of western cultures where the ideal is to look slim General Detail does explain anorexia as anorexics pay huge amounts of attention to what they eat and loose weight 10. Homeostasis Lateral vs Ventromedial hypothalamus Amygdala & Inferior frontal cortex Neural Mechanisms 11. Homeostasis - Neural Mechanisms Explanation Homeostasis is the cycle of eating. It detects and corrects its internal environment. The main switches which turn eating off and on is the Lateral hypothalamus and the ventromedial hypothalamus. When a person becomes hungry an increase in blood glucose results in eating until reaching a level of satiety. The ventromedial hypothalamus is alerted that we are full acting as the off switch. The process of becoming full and the message sent to our brains telling us this is slow so often results in overeating. Over a period of time, blood glucose levels decline. Eventually, the Lateral Hypothalamus is alerted switching on our eating. We then feel hungry and eat again. This is a continuous cycle which doesnt end. Evidence Zhang et al Mice were split into two groups (all mice had a leptin deficiency), half of which were injected with Leptin and he other half left normally Mice who were injected with leptin felt a less need to eat proving that leptin needs to be present in animals in order for the homeostasis process to work effectively Evaluating studies Rats were used in the study so resulted cannot be generalised for humans Evaluation Theory IDAs Nature vs nurture- The theory is based on nature in that it is our genes that control this but does not take into account nurture and how the environment effects us Free will The approach is biological therefore we have no real control over how it effects us General Eating Increase in blood glucose Ventromedial Hypothalamus Satiety Stop eating Decrease in blood glucose Lateral hypothalamus Hungry 12. Lateral Hypothalamus vs Ventromedial Hypothalamus - Neural Mechanisms Explanation The Lateral hypothalamus, also known as the hunger centre, 'turns on eating. When it has been switched on, a person will seek out to find food and consume it. Neuropeptide Y (NPY) is an important neurotransmitter which helps turns on eating. An excess amount of this neurotransmitter can cause a mass amount of overeating even when satiated. Damage to the lateral hypothalamus results in a condition called aphagia (lack of eating) a refusal to eat food even when hungry. The Ventromedial hypothalamus, also known as the satiety centre, does the opposite job, it turns off eating. It sends messages to the brain to tell us that we are full and need to stop eating. But the process is slow which is why we often overeat. Damage to the ventromedial hypothalamus causes a condition of hyperphagia (over eating). Evidence Bayliss et al They found that when they damaged the Ventromedial Hypothalamus in rats by making lesions in them, they became obese This proves that when there is damage to the Ventromedial Hypothalamus, homeostasis cannot function correctly Evaluating studies Rats were used in the study so resulted cannot be generalised for humans Evaluation Theory IDAs Reductionism the system is not as simple or adaptive as it is made out to be, there is a lot of other factors which determine our eating process (i.e- medical conditions) Deterministic We pick and choose what we eat and when we eat it, its not always the body telling us what to do General Strong biological evidence to support explanation 13. Amygdala & Inferior frontal cortex - Neural Mechanisms Explanation The amygdala is the selection of foods based a previous experience. For example, a person might avoid a certain food due to previously having a bad experience with it. This also means that a person is more likely to select a familiar food over an unfamiliar food because they already know it tastes good. The inferior frontal cortex deals with smells. The olfactory blub is the part of the brain which is responsible for smell. If a food smells bad or not what we are use to, we would be less likely to eat it because we associate smell with taste. Likewise, if we smell something tasty, we are more inclined to eat it as it appeals to our smell and henceforth, it appeals to our taste. Evidence Rolls and Rolls Removed the amygdala in rats They found that rats then ate both familiar and unfamiliar foods Other rats who still had their amygdala in tact would tend to eat more familiar foods Evaluating studies Animal study the findings from rats cannot be generalised to humans Evaluating theory IDAs Reductionism all biological, no emotion or evolutionary explanation included Determinism we have control over what we eat and just because we smell something tasty doesn't mean we have to eat it, some like to try new things Nature vs nurture- No environmental cause, all nature - genes General Individual differences- some people are more curious and willing to try new 14. Taste aversion Environment of evolutionary adaption (EEA) and Diet Evolutionary 15. Taste Aversion - Evolutionary Explanation Taste aversion is the response of the taste or smell of food resulting in our like or dislike of the food. Bait shyness is a form of taste aversion. It was originally found by farmers who discovered that it was difficult to kill the rats from eating the crops as they would take a small amount of food and see if the become ill or not. From this, the rat would learn to avoid the food and try on other foods. The rat associates the illness with the crop therefore learns to not eat it again. Recently, this has occurred with the odour of food. If a food smells wrong or nasty, it would be assumed this is poisoned and will learn not to eat it. In todays society, this could mean a person might smell cheese and assume it is off. This is due to our ancestors realising that some foods are poisoned and we would assume the similar thought process. The medicine effect is another taste aversion. The rats on these farmers crops can also learn which foods are good for them and help them heal quicker. They will learn which foods help them heal the fastest and therefore will be preferred in the future. Evidence Garcia et al Exposed rats to a short amount of radiation shortly after eating a type of food The rats associated the effects of radiation with the food and therefore did not want to eat the food anymore Evaluating studies Ethical Were the rats left were permeant affects of radiation protection from harm Evaluation IDAs Animal issues The reaction and behaviour of the rats cannot be generalised to humans as we do not function in the same way Reductionism No biological aspects have been taken into account, all based on how those before us acted, how can we prove these are relevant in todays society 16. Diet Meat and Early Diet - Evolutionary Explanation The Environment of evolutionary adaption (EEA) is the environment from which species first evolved and adapted. Animals all lived in different conditions in different areas of the word and therefore have adapted to survive in different ways. It is the set of problems faced by members of that species over time. The species face reproductive problems that another animal wouldnt. Natural selection had favoured adaptions geared towards survival. Early humans were hunter-gatherers whose diet was either animal or plant based foods. We grew a natural desire for fatty foods when it was discovered a high amount of energy was required to live and hunt on. Food today still has the same amount of energy (calories) however is not particular nutritious. In the EEA, calories were not easily available and because they are today, it is easy to see why we have grown such a preference towards fatty foods. In the EEA, meat tended to be more readily available than plants did. In particular, animal organs i.e- liver, kidneys and brains (food high in energy) were most commonly eaten. This was necessary for us to grow and develop intelligence. Meat supplied early humans with essential amino acids, minerals and nutrients to substitute for lack of plants. Evidence Gibson and Wardle The best way to prove the evolutionary explanation and that food preference is innate is to test it on children They offered the children a variety of vegetables from which they selected which ones they would most like to eat The children picked the most calorific foods e.g- bananas and potatoes proving we have an innate preference towards high calorie foods Evaluating studies Research was focused on a long time ago from which no one today was alive to witness which means evidence is based on not necessarily truthful information lack of validity Evaluation IDAs Ethnocentric If we evolved to all like certain foods then why do certain countries tend to dislike certain types of food than others? Reductionist Fails to include biological causes for eating behaviour i.e- lateral and ventromedial hypothalamus 17. Cultural & Media Ethnicity & Peers Personality Anorexia Nervosa (Psychological) 18. Cognitive - Anorexia Nervosa (Psychological) Explanation The cognitive explanation of anorexia nervosa states that it is a result of faulty thinking which causes irrational beliefs about food. Often sufferers of anorexia have misperceptions about their body e.g.- view their body as overweight when its actually underweight. They have the all or nothing thinking. If they fail at one hurdle they have ruined their life. Another form of speaking they experience is the magical thinking. If I reach a size 6 I will be perfect. Or overgeneralizing thinking If I fail at controlling my eating I will fail at life The faulty thinking distortions may be that they blame their self worth and self esteem, on their appearance and unless they look good they will never feel good. Catastrophizing is a process whereby a person will overemphasise the importance of one event and always assume the worst. If I eat that piece of cake I will turn fat Evidence McKenzie et al Anorexic patients judged their ideal weight as lower than normal patients Following a sugary snack, they placed themselves as a higher body size whereas normal patients did not Evaluating studies Cannot accurately rate body weight on a scale they make themselves Evaluating theory IDAS Gender bias most research is female based due to the nature of the disorder Reductionist Focuses on the brain waves which may be biological but does not consider environment General 19. Culture and Media - Anorexia Nervosa (Psychological) Explanation The western culture often portrays models to look slim, tall and beautiful. It tends to be the teenagers that are mainly affected by this and more female than male. The teenage female are therefore most at risk of having a lower self-esteem and therefore are most at risk of developing Anorexia nervosa. Other cultures may praise excess weight. The African culture tends to see a more plumb women as more attractive as it shows a sign of wealth and excess eating. The media affects people in a variety of different ways. The media portrays this image of thin models through television, magazines and newspapers and people are socialised into believing that is what we should look like. Those with an already lower self esteem will compare themselves to these models. Some will continue on in a diet to make themselves to look this way. Anorexia will result in these diets taken to the extreme and feeling more of a compulsion to look as good as they do. Social learning theory suggests that we copy behaviour from role models. In this instance, the models portrayed in the media are the role models which the teenagers copy and follow. Evidence Gregory et al Around 16% of 15-18 year old girls are currently on a diet in the UK. Jones and Buckingham Individuals with a lower self-esteem are more likely to compare themselves to idealized images portrayed in the media. Evaluating studies Gregory et al - Ethnocentric Only the British culture, cannot generalise for other cultures Evaluation IDAs Reductionism No biological factors such as neurotransmitters included making it one sided Deterministic Assumes that by watching TV you will get an eating disorder 20. Neurotransmitters Neurodevelopment Adapted to flee & the reproductive suppression hypothesis Anorexia Nervosa (Biological) 21. Neurotransmitters - Anorexia Nervosa (Biological) Explanation Neurotransmitters can explain the onset of Anorexia . Serotonin and dopamine have been found to contribute to anorexia. Both have been found to exist at abnormal levels in individuals with anorexia. Dopamine is seen as the pleasure centre. When the levels of dopamine increase, the pleasure centre works in a faulty way and change the way we interpret rewards. Diet restriction has been associated with reduced dopamine levels in the hypothalamus. The altered pleasure centre then sees weight loss and hunger as desirable. Serotonin is seen as the calming neuro transmitter. An increase in the level in serotonin means a person is able to reduce their weight as they see sense in their actions. Serotonin feelings are associated to feelings of well being an satiety and an anorexic can justify their lack of food intake this way as they teach themselves to not be hungry. High levels are found in current anorexia suffers who show anxiety. In order for these feeling of anxiety to stop they need to reduce eating. Evidence Kaye et al Used PET scans of 10 recovering Anorexia suffers and 12 healthy people. There was an over activity of dopamine on the Anorexia suffers. It was described that hunger pains are now the pleasurable feeling and eating is negative. Evaluating studies Kaye et al only used 24 people in total which cannot be generalised to the general population Evaluating theory IDAs Nature vs nurture Clear nature and biology effectively investigated but no evidence of nature and environment or how the family might effect things Gender bias looking into anorexia means there has been an emphasis on females and results may not be the same for men General 22. Neurodevelopment - Anorexia Nervosa (Biological) Explanation Neurodevelopment is the association between premature birth and anorexia. Brain damage to the child through birth complications causing hypoxia (lack of oxygen) impairs the development of the baby. If the mother has anorexia, the baby will not be getting sufficient nutrients. This gives the child a double disadvantage as the mother can transmit a genetic vulnerability to the baby and inadequate nutritional supply. It has also been suggested that the season of birth you are born is somewhat contributing to the likelihood of having anorexia. If you are born in the spring time, you are the most at risk. This is because, whilst the baby is still inside the mother during the colder winter months, they get more infections and colds affecting the babies development. Evidence Eagles Anorexic individuals are born later than regular babies The more elder siblings the child had increased the likelihood of exposing the mother to common infections Evaluating studies Millions of children are born in certain seasons of which a small percentage are anorexic Evaluating theory IDAs Deterministic in assuming all children born in spring or born late is anorexic Nature vs nurture No involvement of nurture and environment General How does this explain other babies you get diseases during pregnancy but parents are not anorexic 23. Adapted to flee and the reproductive suppression hypothesis - Anorexia Nervosa (Biological) Explanation The hypothesis suggests that the reason anorexics are capable with going without food is an evolutionary development of migration. The symptoms of anorexia reflect back to a time where famine in a country resulted in migration. Many years ago when there was an outbreak of disease amongst crops, a deficit of food would result in many people migrating to a new area to survive. During these periods, people could go for many days, if not weeks without eating with no choice. Food restriction is a common feature when migrating. As a result, a survival instinct kicks in to cope with food restriction and the human body has adapted to cope with these situations of lack of food and can explain why anorexics today can send days without feeling the need to eat. The reproductive suppression hypothesis suggests that teenage girls would starve themselves in order to delay their mensuration which means they are unable to get pregnant. The explanation is adaptive as it allows a female to stop conceiving when conditions are not suitable for their offspring's survival. In the absence of contraceptives, weight loss can prevent pregnancy. It is necessary for a mother to have a certain amount of fat in order for mensuration and distorts fertility chances. Evidence The explanation was created by Guisinger. The reproductive suppression hypothesis was introduced by Surkey. Evaluating studies/explanation IDAs Deterministic if everyone is adapted to cope with long periods without food then why does everyone not act the same way as anorexics. Reductionist anorexia is a complex disorder which these explanations fail to explain as it is oversimplifying the reasons for its onset. Nature vs nurture It is a biological approach so focuses on nature but has also looks into nurture and how our previous environment effects the way we are today General Cannot presume there is a direct cause and effect between these hypothesis and onset of anorexia. Cause of anorexia is identifying but no look into why it is maintained which