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Metacognition, emotional functioning and binge eating in adolescence: the moderation role of need to control thoughts

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Eating and Weight Disorders - Studies on Anorexia, Bulimia and Obesity Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose

Binge eating is predicted by emotion dysregulation and poor emotional awareness. Dysfunctional metacognition is also implied in several eating disorders, but research has not yet investigated the interactions among emotional and metacognitive processes involved in binge eating. The present study investigated the relation between metacognition and binge eating in a sample of adolescents, testing the interaction effect between the need to control thoughts and the lack of emotional awareness on binge eating.

Methods

Participants were 804 adolescents (age range 15–20; 49.7% female), who completed self-report instruments assessing binge eating, emotion regulation, and metacognition.

Results

Binge eating was predicted by gender, BMI, emotion dysregulation, lack of emotional awareness, and dysfunctional metacognition dimensions (cognitive confidence and need to control thoughts). An important moderating effect was found, whereby the relationship between binge eating and lack of emotional awareness was only significant for individuals with a high need to control thoughts.

Conclusions

Results described emotional and metacognitive functioning in binge eating adolescents, suggesting that the need to control thoughts is a risk factor, whereas good metacognitive competencies are protective from binge eating, even in presence of poor emotional awareness.

Level of evidence

Level V, cross-sectional descriptive study.

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Notes

  1. Two MANOVA analyses were also run to verify the possible presence of age differences respectively on emotion regulation dimensions, and metacognition dimensions. However, no significant effects were detected neither on emotion regulation dimensions, Wilk’s Lambda = 0.999, F(2, 801) = 0.25, p = .77, nor in metacognition dimensions, Wilk’s Lambda = 0.994, F(5, 789) = 1.03, p = .40. Since age was unrelated with all main variables (emotion regulation, metacognition, binge eating), it was not entered in the moderation regression analysis.

  2. Other interaction effects between metacognition dimensions and emotion dysregulation as well as between metacognition dimensions and lack of emotional awareness were also tested in the fourth step, but they were not significant.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Social and Developmental Psychology, University of Rome Sapienza, via dei Marsi 78, 00185, Rome, Italy

    Fiorenzo Laghi, Dora Bianchi, Sara Pompili, Antonia Lonigro & Roberto Baiocco

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  1. Fiorenzo Laghi
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  2. Dora Bianchi
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  3. Sara Pompili
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Correspondence to Fiorenzo Laghi.

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The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. Approval from the Research Ethics Board of Department of Social and Developmental Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome was obtained before data were collected for the current study.

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Informed consent was obtained from the parents of all participants included in the study.

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Laghi, F., Bianchi, D., Pompili, S. et al. Metacognition, emotional functioning and binge eating in adolescence: the moderation role of need to control thoughts. Eat Weight Disord 23, 861–869 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40519-018-0603-1

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