Sex differences in the effects of disinhibition,perceived peer drinking,and delay discounting on drinking among Japanese college students

Disinhibition, perceived peer drinking, and delay discounting are considered significant predictors of drinking in young adults. This study examined whether perceived peer drinking and delay discounting mediate the association between disinhibition and drinking for young men and women. In this study, 258 Japanese college students (109 men and 149 women, mean age 19.17 (SD = 1.20) years old) completed a self-administered questionnaire that included four measures—the disinhibition subscale of the Sensation Seeking Scale for Japanese Adolescents, the proportion of friends who drink as an index of perceived peer drinking behaviors, the Monetary Choice Questionnaire, and participants’ own drinking behavior. In the multiple mediator models analyzed using structural equation modeling, for both sexes, perceived peer drinking had the largest direct effect on participants’ drinking, followed by disinhibition and delay discounting. However, the results of mediation analyses indicated that perceived peer drinking mediated the association between disinhibition and drinking for only women. The results of this study imply that it is important to consider sex differences in the association between personality traits and peer influence to develop programs aiming to reduce drinking among young adults in Japan.     

Does habit strength moderate the intention–behaviour relationship in the Theory of Planned Behaviour? The case of fruit consumption

The present study examined if habit strength moderated the influence of intention on fruit consumption in a Dutch adult sample (N?=?521, 46.3% males, mean age?=?34.50, SD?=?10.87), using the theoretical relations of the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB). TPB variables and habit strength were assessed at baseline. Fruit consumption was assessed with a validated questionnaire five weeks later. Three groups were created: low habit strength (n?=?180), medium habit strength (n?=?185) and high habit strength (n?=?156). Confirmatory factor analyses and multi-group path analyses were performed using AMOS 4.0. A good fit was obtained for the overall measurement model and the structural models. Multi-group path analyses showed that intention was a significant predictor of fruit consumption in the low habit (β?=?0.36, p?<?0.001) and medium habit group (β?=?0.30, p?<?0.001), but a non-significant predictor in the high habit group (β?=?0.05, p?=?0.596). Implications for information-based and motivation-based interventions are discussed.     

How highlighted utensils influence consumption in a dark setting

Abstract

Objective: Previous research has shown that people consume less food in the dark compared to normal vision conditions. While this effect is commonly attributed to increased attention to internal cues, it could also be caused by increased difficulty to maneuver in a dark setting. This study investigated this potential alternative explanation.

Design: A 2 (dark versus normal vision setting)?×?2 (highlighted versus non-highlighted utensils) between-subjects design was employed.

Main outcome measures: Perceived difficulty of maneuvering and consumption of yoghurt were assessed as main outcome measures.

Results: Participants consumed marginally less in dark compared to normal vision conditions, and experienced higher difficulty of maneuvering. Importantly, both effects were qualified by a significant interaction with highlighting, which increased consumption and reduced perceived difficulty compared to no highlights. Difficulty of maneuvering did not mediate the interactive effect of vision and highlighting on consumption.

Conclusion: Difficulty to maneuver should be considered when investigating eating behaviour under dark conditions. In line with an embodied cognition account, results also reveal the necessity of visual information for interaction with objects in the environment and imply that detail-deprived object information may be sufficient for activation of the motor system.     

A comparison of two report formats for alcohol and caffeine use

Abstract

The present study compared two different methods of assessing alcohol and caffeine use in a community sample of adults over a one-year period. Daily reporting of beer/wine intake was more stable over time and showed higher correspondence with Quantity-frequency measures than daily reporting of hard liquor use. Coffee and tea use showed high temporal stability and good alternate form reliability, though a tendency to underreport typical use of coffee use was observed. The psychometric properties of substance use measures appear to vary with type of beverage consumed and report format.     

Promoting fan engagement: An exploration of the fundamental motives for sport consumption amongst premier league football spectators

The aim of this study was to examine whether fan engagement could be predicted by the motivational dimensions of sport consumption. A sample of 806 football sport fans (African = 85%, male = 67.4%, part of an organised supporters club = 57.6%) were participants. They completed the Fan Engagement Scale (FES), the Motivation Scale for Sport Consumption (MSSC) and a biographical questionnaire. Structural equation modelling was applied to evaluate the postulated regressive paths between the motivational dimensions for sports consumption and fan engagement. The motivational dimensions for sport consumption were clustered into personal and game-related factors. Both these clusters of factors were predictive of fan engagement. Customer engagement (CE) theory appears to explain the findings.