Anxiety, impulsivity and stress management skills as predictives of night eating behaviour

Today, due to changing habits, lifestyles and opportunities, healthy nutrition has become a very popular and researched area and has been a phenomenon that is investigated by many different disciplines. In this context, researchers have focused to areas such as feeding disorders, disordered eating attitudes and behaviors. Night eating syndrome, as one of the eating disorders that affect the physiological and psychological health of individuals, is also the main focus of this study. In this study, it was aimed to investigate anxiety, impulsivity and stress management skills as potential predictors of night eating behavior, as well as to examine the prevalence of night eating behavior and its distribution by gender. In this context, data were collected from a total of 432 individuals (mean age= 36) of 218 females and 214 males, using the Night Eating Questionnaire, Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire, Beck Anxiety Inventory, UPPS Impulsive Behavior Scale, and Stress Coping Styles Scale, together with a personal information form. The collected data were analyzed by independent sample t-test, pearson correlation test and regression analysis, which are parametric test methods. When the findings obtained within the scope of this study were examined, it was seen that the optimistic approach, submissive approach and social support seeking behaviors as stress management styles were statistically significant predictors of night eating behavior. In addition, it was found that these predictors differ based on genders, and optimistic approach behavior, as one of the stress coping styles, is a significant predictor of night eating behavior in the female sample, while only social support seeking behavior is a significant predictor of night eating behavior in men. Based on the findings, it was concluded that it is important to develop different approaches for men and women who are dealing with night eating behavior.