The role of restraint and disinhibition in appetite control

Fifty-six women classified according to their restraint and disinhibition scores, using Stunkard and Messick's (1985) Eating Questionnaire, participated in an experiment in which the proportion of carbohydrate in a prepared meal and the knowledge provided to them about its contents were varied. Measures were taken of their desire for food and their willingness to eat, as well as the total intake and the amount of carbohydrate and of protein they ate at an ad libitum test meal 4 hr later. While the results do not support the argument that laboratory-induced counter-regulatory eating can be attributed to disinhibition, they emphasize the usefulness of our experimental model which allows the interaction of dietary, cognitive and personality factors to be examined concurrently in investigations of appetite control.