Valence and arousal-based affective evaluations of foods.

We investigated the nutrient-specific and individual-specific validity of dual-process models of valenced and arousal-based affective evaluations of foods across the disordered eating spectrum. 283 undergraduate women provided implicit and explicit valence and arousal-based evaluations of 120 food photos with known nutritional information on structurally similar indirect and direct affect misattribution procedures (AMP; Payne et al., 2005, 2008), and completed questionnaires assessing body mass index (BMI), hunger, restriction, and binge eating. Nomothetically, added fat and added sugar enhance evaluations of foods. Idiographically, hunger and binge eating enhance activation, whereas BMI and restriction enhance pleasantness. Added fat is salient for women who are heavier, hungrier, or who restrict; added sugar is influential for less hungry women. Restriction relates only to valence, whereas binge eating relates only to arousal. Findings are similar across implicit and explicit affective evaluations, albeit stronger for explicit, providing modest support for dual-process models of affective evaluation of foods.

Unhealthy how? Implicit and explicit affective evaluations of different types of unhealthy foods.

The present study examines the utility of distinguishing nutritional characteristics in implicit and explicit affective evaluations of foods, both nomothetically and idiographically. To this end, we employ indirect and direct versions of the affect misattribution procedure (AMP; Payne, Cheng, Govorun, & Stewart, 2005) to assess affective evaluations of foods that vary along dimensions of added fat and added sugar. Normatively, both added fat and added sugar are associated with more positive affective evaluations. Idiographically, both hunger and external eating are associated with more positive fat-based affective evaluations. Patterns of results were similar across implicit and explicit affective evaluations, inconsistent with a dual-process conceptualization of affective evaluation. Overall, the current work supports the utility of continuing to employ more stringently characterized image stimuli with known nutritional properties, as well as structurally similar measures of implicit and explicit affective evaluations in future work.

Disordered eating links to body-relevant and body-irrelevant influences on self-evaluation.

We investigated eating- and weight-related correlates of self-evaluation influences (SEIs) and examined the extent to which such SEIs can be both over- and undervalued and the extent to which measurement strategy affects SEIs. A female undergraduate sample (n = 549) completed 3 measures of SEI importance and questionnaires assessing disordered eating (DE), body mass index (BMI), and depression. SEI measures included Likert scale, rank ordering, and pairwise forced choice; a subset (n = 62) also completed the Shape- and Weight-Based Self-Esteem Scale (SAWBS). Only rank ordering, forced choice, and SAWBS constrain choices among SEIs, such that prioritizing one SEI necessarily deprioritizes another, which reflects real-world restrictions on individuals' allotment of time and energy (e.g., spending hours exercising daily necessarily reduces time available for other activities). By any measure, women with DE overvalue body shape and weight. The constraining measures reveal systematic undervaluation of intelligence and achievement among women with DE and an enhanced effect of DE on the overvaluation of weight and on the undervaluation of being a good person among those with higher BMI. Depressed women's self-evaluations overemphasize appearance and underemphasize interpersonal relationships. Self-evaluations of women with DE are marked by both over- and undervaluation of relevant SEIs; the overvaluation of shape and weight in DE may be associated with costs. Future use of constraining measures, such as forced choice or rank ordering, may enhance our understanding of both over- and underemphasized SEIs among women with DE.

Intimate partner and general aggression perpetration among combat veterans presenting to a posttraumatic stress disorder clinic.

This study examined rates and correlates of intimate partner and general aggression perpetration among 236 male combat veterans seeking services in a Veteran's Affairs posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) clinic. Approximately 33% of those in an intimate relationship reported perpetrating partner physical aggression in the previous year, and 91% reported partner psychological aggression. Comparable rates were found for general aggression perpetration among partnered and nonpartnered veterans. PTSD symptoms as well as symptoms of depression were associated with aggression across subgroups and forms of aggression, and PTSD symptoms reflecting arousal and lack of control were generally the strongest predictor of aggression. Findings indicate a need for additional aggression screening and intervention development for this population, and highlight the targeting of heightened arousal and lack of behavioral control in aggression interventions.