Subjective well-being and dieting

Objective. To investigate the dysphoric mood and negative feelings of well-being among dieters, using Brunstein's (1993) goal-setting model. Design. Two time-extended studies were carried out. The first involved 83 girls (M = 16 years, 9 months) who were assessed twice across five weeks. The second study tested 27 consistent, adolescent female dieters at the beginning and end of a three-month period. Within-subject analyses also compared weight loss and academic goal setting. Methods. Participants completed questionnaire-based measures of subjective well-being, goal-setting commitment, perceived attainability and progress. Results. In the first study, improvement in well-being occurred in relation to manageable academic goals but not in relation to weight loss. Participants in the second study experienced an increase in negative affect, particularly if they were highly committed to their weight-loss goal and perceived it to be difficult to attain. Conclusions. The findings in relation to academic goals emphasize the importance of helping young girls to identify goals that are personally 'achievable'. In contrast, the results involving dieting suggest that our efforts should be directed towards enhancing young girls' body esteem and discouraging attempts at weight loss, especially given that most: of the girls were within a healthy weight range prior to their weight-loss attempt.