The effect of self-esteem, attitude towards the body, and eating habit on cognitive reactivity

Abstract

Increased prevalence of unhealthy lifestyles and dietary problems have been reported among the population especially female college students. This research aimed to test the model whether self-esteem, attitude towards body, eating habits, and Body Mass Index (BMI) affects cognitive reactivity in female college students. A total of 140 female university students aged 18-22 years participated in this study. Data analysis used Partial Least Square Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). A descriptive analysis using a one-way ANOVA test was performed to see whether there were differences among variables. Results show that self-esteem has a significant effect on body attitude and a negative significant effect on BMI and cognitive reactivity. Body attitude has a significant positive effect on eating habits. In contrast, it has a significant negative effect on BMI. The eating habit has a significant positive effect on cognitive reactivity. BMI has a significant effect on cognitive reactivity. Further, body attitude significantly mediates the relationship between self-esteem and eating habits. Also, body attitude significantly mediated the relationship of self-esteem with BMI. Additionally, the obese group has lower self-esteem and lower body attitude compared to normal and overweight groups.

Keywords

• body mass index
• bmi
• cognitive reactivity
• female university student
• psychological factors
• self-esteem