Little research has explored the basic relationships between different components of mindfulness and eating behaviors associated with obesity even though mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) have been widely utilized to treat eating behaviors. This study explored these relationships in order to inform more effective MBIs for obesity. Participants (N = 533) from a mixed community and undergraduate sample completed an online battery of assessments. All components of mindfulness were related to eating behaviors as would be expected, with the exception of trait mindful awareness. A series of multiple hierarchical regressions showed that mindful eating was a unique predictor of eating behaviors accounting for an additional 13.9 to 29.4% of the variance observed. These findings suggest mindful eating may be a better treatment target for MBIs for eating-related outcomes compared to general mindfulness inductions. Inconsistencies in mindfulness measurement were found, highlighting the need for further investigation of the relationships among mindfulness components.
","abstract_html":"<p>Little research has explored the basic relationships between different components of mindfulness and eating behaviors associated with obesity even though mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) have been widely utilized to treat eating behaviors. This study explored these relationships in order to inform more effective MBIs for obesity. Participants (<em>N</em> = 533) from a mixed community and undergraduate sample completed an online battery of assessments. All components of mindfulness were related to eating behaviors as would be expected, with the exception of trait mindful awareness. A series of multiple hierarchical regressions showed that mindful eating was a unique predictor of eating behaviors accounting for an additional 13.9 to 29.4% of the variance observed. These findings suggest mindful eating may be a better treatment target for MBIs for eating-related outcomes compared to general mindfulness inductions. Inconsistencies in mindfulness measurement were found, highlighting the need for further investigation of the relationships among mindfulness components.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Battles, Jennifer"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)","degree_level":"Open Access Thesis","degree_discipline":"Psychology","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Tamara Loverich, Ph.D.","Karen Saules, Ph.D.","Alexandros Maragakis, Ph.D."],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2018,"date_issued":"2018-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2018-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:17:33Z","subjects":["mindful eating","mindfulness","obesity","Psychology"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://commons.emich.edu/theses/992","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Tamara Loverich, Ph.D.","Karen Saules, Ph.D.","Alexandros Maragakis, Ph.D."]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Battles, Jennifer"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2020-02-26T08:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Psychology"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Open Access Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["mindful eating","mindfulness","obesity","Psychology"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://commons.emich.edu/theses/992"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Little research has explored the basic relationships between different components of mindfulness and eating behaviors associated with obesity even though mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) have been widely utilized to treat eating behaviors. This study explored these relationships in order to inform more effective MBIs for obesity. Participants (N = 533) from a mixed community and undergraduate sample completed an online battery of assessments. All components of mindfulness were related to eating behaviors as would be expected, with the exception of trait mindful awareness. A series of multiple hierarchical regressions showed that mindful eating was a unique predictor of eating behaviors accounting for an additional 13.9 to 29.4% of the variance observed. These findings suggest mindful eating may be a better treatment target for MBIs for eating-related outcomes compared to general mindfulness inductions. Inconsistencies in mindfulness measurement were found, highlighting the need for further investigation of the relationships among mindfulness components.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["An exploration of the relationships between mindfulness and obesity-related eating behaviors"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Tamara Loverich, Ph.D.","Karen Saules, Ph.D.","Alexandros Maragakis, Ph.D."],"dc:creator":["Battles, Jennifer"],"dc:date.available":["2020-02-26T08:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["Little research has explored the basic relationships between different components of mindfulness and eating behaviors associated with obesity even though mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) have been widely utilized to treat eating behaviors. This study explored these relationships in order to inform more effective MBIs for obesity. Participants (N = 533) from a mixed community and undergraduate sample completed an online battery of assessments. All components of mindfulness were related to eating behaviors as would be expected, with the exception of trait mindful awareness. A series of multiple hierarchical regressions showed that mindful eating was a unique predictor of eating behaviors accounting for an additional 13.9 to 29.4% of the variance observed. These findings suggest mindful eating may be a better treatment target for MBIs for eating-related outcomes compared to general mindfulness inductions. Inconsistencies in mindfulness measurement were found, highlighting the need for further investigation of the relationships among mindfulness components.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://commons.emich.edu/theses/992"],"dc:subject":["mindful eating","mindfulness","obesity","Psychology"],"dc:title":["An exploration of the relationships between mindfulness and obesity-related eating behaviors"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Psychology"],"thesis:degree_level":["Open Access Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:17:33Z"}