The Psychology of Eating: From Healthy to Disordered Behavior

48 Food Choice

expectations. The results showed that only preferences and outcome
expectations predicted actual food choice but that 90 percent of the variance
in food choice remained unaccounted for. The authors concluded from this
study that “SCT (social cognition theory) may not be a robust framework
for explaining dietary behaviour in children” (p. 275), and suggested that
a broader model which included factors such as self-esteem, parental and
family dietary habits, and the availability of fruit and vegetables may be
more effective.

Problems with a cognitive model

A cognitive model of food choice highlights the role of cognitions and makes
explicit the cognitions which remain only implicit within a developmental
perspective. It provides a useful framework for studying these cognitions,
and highlights their impact upon behavior. However, there are some pro-
blems with this approach, as follows:

• Most research carried out within a cognitive perspective uses quantitative
  methods and devises questionnaires based on existing models. This
  approach means that the cognitions being examined are chosen by the
  researcher rather than offered by the person being researched. It is
  possible that many important cognitions are missed which are central
  to understanding food choice.


• Although focusing on cognitions, those incorporated by the models are
  limited and ignore the wealth of meanings associated with food and body
  size.


• Research from a cognitive perspective assumes that behavior is a con-
  sequence of rational thought and ignores the role of affect. Emotions such
  as fear (of weight gain, of illness), pleasure (over a success which deserves
  a treat), and guilt (about overeating) might contribute towards food choice.


• Some cognitive models incorporate the views of others in the form of
  the construct “subjective norm.” This does not adequately address the
  central role that others play in a behavior as social as eating.


• At times the cognitive models appear tautological, in that the independent
  variables do not seem conceptually separate from the dependent variables
  they are being used to predict. For example, is the cognition “I am
  confident I can eat fruit and vegetables” really distinct from the cogni-
  tion “I intend to eat fruit and vegetables”? (See Ogden, 2003, for a dis-
  cussion of the problems with cognition models.)