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Volume 7, Issue 7 (Suppl)
J Obes Weight Loss Ther, an open access journal
ISSN:2165-7904
Obesity & Fitness Expo 2017
November 13-15, 2017
November 13-15, 2017 | Atlanta, USA
17
th
World Fitness Expo
16
th
International Conference and Exhibition on
Obesity & Weight Management
&
A qualitative exploration of goal threat perceptions and basic psychological needs among dieters
Kori L Propst
The Diet Doc, USA
T
he majority of individuals who lose weight will gain it back within five years. Emotional, cognitive, behavioral and motivational
risk factors exist for weight loss relapse. The meta-theory of Basic Psychological Needs, drawn from Self-Determination
Theory, appears to offer the most comprehensive of explanations for the lack of self-regulatory behaviors that contribute to weight
loss recidivism. This theory provided a foundation for interpreting how the basic motivational needs of autonomy, competence
and connectedness relate to the experiences of dieters’ perceived threats to their weight-related goals. A qualitative multiple-case
study inquiry was conducted with online semi-structured email interviews among a purposive sample of nine participants who
were overweight or obese, had been dieting over the last five years, or who maintained a 10% loss for three years or longer. Data
collected included emotional regulation strategies, expressions of emotion, behaviors, motivational influences and perceptions to
explore the factors influencing goal congruent behavior. Online weight loss forum text was collected to compare the experiences of
dieters engaging in structured online support with those of the interview participants. Participants experienced emotional threats
most frequently. All indicated emotion they felt incompetent to manage effectively, which led to a continuum of overeating and
subsequent reductions in competence and persistence. All threats connected most frequently to competence, mediated by increased
relatedness. Participants indicated wide variation in use and solicitation of support, influencing satisfaction of all three needs. Results
indicate the importance of targeting contextual knowledge and exploration of the needs to enhance self-awareness, threat adaptability
and motivation within technically and adaptively oriented situations. Themes revealed nuanced needs-threatening and satisfying
processes. The data may indicate that dieters taking deliberate actions toward needs-satisfying behaviors may perceive goal threats
will less intensity, leading to enhanced self-regulation and motivation.
kori@thedietdoc.comJ Obes Weight Loss Ther 2017, 7:7 (Suppl)
DOI: 10.4172/2165-7904-C1-55