Psychological functions of eating, drinking, and smoking in adult women

The psychological functions of eating, drinking, and smoking were analyzed in relation to the self-reported behaviors of 20 to 30 year old women. Participants were recruited from a range of sources, and the 766 volunteers generated 2 quasirepresentative samples of 265 participants each which matched each other and census data on a range of demo-graphic variables. Eight scales of psychological functions were developed. In each domain, 1 scale reflected behavior aimed at relief of negative effect, and 1 scale reflected positively motivated behavior. In the eating domain, a third scale represented eating in response to external cues, and in the drinking domain there was a scale of socially motivated drinking. Psychometric properties of each scale were investigated. Multiple correlations between the scales and their criteria ranged between R = .63-.75 reflecting the importance of the predictors studied. Functions were compared within and between behavioral domains and the role of habit was also compared across domains.