The Psychology Of Food Eating

Decisions about what to eat and how much eat are among the most pervasive judgments and cognitions humans navigate in their daily lives. These decisions around food and subsequent eating behaviors have significant impact for health and well-being, given the rising incidences of chronic diseases associated with dietary patterns, such as obesity and type-2 diabetes. This class will cover psychological, social, and environmental processes that guide people's cognitions and behaviors related to food and eating. A major theme of the class will focus on psychosocial and non-homeostatic factors that modulate appetite, and the psychological processes that may regulate or bias one's experience of hunger and fullness. This class will adopt a holistic and integrative approach to study of these questions by examining the role of diverse contextual factors (social, cultural, economic, and evolutionary) in influencing the psychological processes regulating appetite and food intake patterns. By completing this course, students will have deeper understanding of key findings and theories related to psychological and behavioral aspects of human nutrition, ability to apply this knowledge to design studies to test their own hypotheses about eating behavior, and be equipped as more critical consumers of research pertaining to these topics. Given rising national and international priorities for addressing chronic diseases linked to dietary behavior (e.g., Singapore's War on Diabetes), this course will provide students experience for potential future involvement in organizations, initiatives, and research targeting these health issues.