Eating behavior, restraint status, and BMI of individuals high and low in perceived self-regulatory success

The Perceived Self-Regulatory Success (PSRS) scale was developed to assess self-reported success at dieting and has been used to differentiate between successful and unsuccessful dieters (Fishbach, Friedman, & Kruglanski, 2003). We re-analyzed data from seventeen studies in order to examine whether PSRS predicted in-lab eating behavior of restrained and unrestrained eaters. We also explored the relation between body mass index, restraint, current dieting, and responding on the PSRS scale. It was found that successful dieters do not necessarily eat less than do unsuccessful dieters when a tempting food is available. Additionally, individuals who considered themselves to be successful dieters were more likely to be unrestrained eaters and current non-dieters than restrained eaters and current dieters. However, regardless of restraint status, individuals high in PSRS had lower BMI than those low in PSRS. These findings suggest that those who score high on the PSRS scale may not be concerned with regulating eating and weight. However, the restrained eaters who do score high on the PSRS scale appear to be successful at controlling their weight, despite not eating less in the lab.