Different methods of assessment, food addiction, emotional eating, and binge eating behaviors: Comparing the total model effects of sequential mediation analysis

Food addiction (FA) is often associated with compulsive overeating and binge eating disorders (BED). However, few studies have investigated the process that could lead to binge eating behaviors starting from FA. Literature showed that FA may trigger emotional eating (EE) - an intensive need to eat to cope with negative emotive states. Moreover, EE often leads to experience negative feelings and cognitions (i.e.: guilt and lack of control) that in turn may lead to binge eating behaviors. However, although FA is widely studied, no studies tested the effect of different methods of assessment on the aforementioned psychological process. Thus, the present study aimed to fill this gap by comparing the effect of sequential mediation analysis of two samples. Participants (N = 215) were randomly divided into two groups who completed a battery of questionnaires with two different methods. The sequential mediation analysis provided satisfying results both in the overall sample as well as in each group. The effect of the method of assessment was assessed by overlapping the total mediation effects of the two groups. The overlapping index (η) suggests a great overlap between the effects of the two groups. These findings suggested that the method of assessment had a small effect on the process that starts from FA leading to binge eating behaviors - through EE and negative feelings/cognitions. These results suggest that the psychological process leading to binge eating behaviors would seem not to be particularly affected by the method of assessment.