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Updated: Jun 4, 2026

Validation of a Psychosocial Intervention on Body Image in Older People: An Experimental Design
Published on: May 31, 2021
Weight loss and self-regulatory eating efficacy in older adults: the cooperative lifestyle intervention program
W Jack Rejeski1, Shannon L Mihalko, Walter T Ambrosius
1Department of Health and Exercise Science, Wake Forest University, P.O. Box 7868, Winston-Salem, NC 27109, USA. rejeski@wfu.edu
Objectives:
Using the weight efficacy lifestyle questionnaire (WEL), we examined whether a group-mediated intervention for weight loss among older, obese adults resulted in changes in self-regulatory self-efficacy for eating behavior and whether these changes mediated weight loss.
Methods:
This was a randomized controlled design, and 288 older adults received 1 of 3 treatments for 6 months: physical activity only (PA), weight loss + physical activity (WL + PA), or a successful aging (SA) health education program. The WEL was administered prior to randomization and again at the 6-month follow-up visit.
Results:
A significant treatment effect was observed for the WEL, F (2249) = 15.11, p < .0001, partial eta2 = .11, showing that improvement occurred only in the WL + PA group as compared with PA and SA. Changes in WEL scores partially mediated the effects of the WL + PA intervention on weight loss.
Discussion:
These results illustrate that WL + PA can be effective in improving older adults' self-efficacy for the self-regulation of eating behavior and that these changes are prospectively related to the amount of weight loss. Further research is warranted on an expanded concept of self-efficacy as well as controlled experimental studies on eating behavior in older adults.
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