Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2025
Published In
Annual Review Of Psychology
Abstract
Many individuals struggle to regulate their own consumption of food. Beginning with general theories of self-control, we review psychological factors that have been shown to influence the regulation of eating, including those related to particular personality variables, such as external eating, restrained eating, and reward sensitivity, as well as situational constraints, including normative influences, emotions, and calorie deprivation. Strategies for the self-control of eating, including reappraisal, effortful inhibition, and various automatic strategies are also reviewed, along with a discussion of the strengths and limitations of historical and contemporary psychological studies investigating food consumption. Whereas extensive examinations of food preferences and body weight have appeared in the psychological literature, we call for more robust research that prioritizes actual eating as the primary dependent measure.
Keywords
self-control, eating, self-regulation, behavior change, dieting
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
T. Mann and Andrew Ward.
(2025).
"The Self-Control Of Eating".
Annual Review Of Psychology.
Volume 76,
87-114.
DOI: 10.1146/annurev-psych-012424-035404
https://works.swarthmore.edu/fac-psychology/1191
Comments
This work is freely available under a Creative Commons license.