(PS8-B31) Conditional Effects of State Fear of Negative Evaluation on Restrictive Eating Behaviors

Fear of negative evaluation (FNE) is a risk factor for the development of disordered eating. Specifically, trait FNE (TFNE) predicts disordered eating severity above and beyond other social anxiety traits. However, it is unclear how state FNE (SFNE) influences eating behavior. Dietary restraint (i.e., the intention to restrict one’s intake) is, likewise, a risk factor in the development and maintenance of eating psychopathology. Further, limiting one’s caloric intake — dietary restriction — predicts poorer long-term physical and psychological outcomes in non-clinical samples. The current study tested a model that proposes that SFNE interacts with dietary restraint to induce restricted caloric intake. Thus, this study tested potential risk factors that predict, over and above dietary restraint alone, engaging in restrictive eating. We hypothesized that: (a) individuals higher on TFNE would restrict more than those low on TFNE; and (b) elevated levels of SFNE would enhance the relationship between restraint and restriction for those with high dietary restraint.

Participants were female undergraduates (N = 64, M [SD] age = 21.8 [6.2] years). Participants were categorized according to TFNE as high (n = 35) or low (n = 29). Procedures first involved assessment of dietary restraint and TFNE. During a subsequent online appointment, participants engaged in 20 hypothetical meal choices that varied by the social context. That is, each meal choice scenario was described as occurring in either a social (e.g., at a university dining hall with a friend for lunch) or non-social (e.g., alone at home in the evening) setting. Calories were listed directly next to meal options and calories chosen per setting were set as a measure of dietary restriction.

A repeated measures mixed ANOVA was conducted to test for the predictive nature of TFNE on restriction (i.e., calories chosen) across social and non-social settings. TFNE (F [1, 61] = 0.698, p = .407) and scenario type (F [1, 61] = .496, β = − 0.008, p = .484) did not predict restriction. A generalized linear mixed model tested for a conditional effect of SFNE on the relationship between dietary restraint and restriction. The model indicated that there was a significant effect of SFNE on restriction (t [4] = -8.47, β = − 2.184, p = < .001), such that individuals experiencing elevated levels of SFNE restricted more. There was no evidence that elevated levels of SFNE enhanced the relationship between restraint and restriction (t [4] = -0.428, β = − 0.023, p = .668).

We sought to examine the degree to which FNE influences the relationship between dietary restraint and restriction. Although SFNE did not enhance the relationship between restraint and restriction, SFNE appeared to play a role on food choice across individuals with high and low TFNE. As such, utilizing treatment interventions that directly challenge the fear of being evaluated by others while eating in social scenarios may diminish the likelihood one would restrict in these settings. Although this was an analog sample, these findings may also highlight the relevance of SFNE on the eating behavior of individuals with eating disorders when eating in social settings.