Research Methods In Psychology

Research Project 2 Guide: External Eating and Disgust Sensitivity

1 INTRODUCTION

Research Project 2 aims to provide an introduction to correlational research and an opportunity to continue developing your report writing skills. As with Research Project 1, you will be provided materials and a data set from a (simulated) study, and you will be required to write up this study in the form of a report.

2 BACKGROUND

External eating refers to an individual’s tendency to eat in response to the smell or sight of food (i.e., external cues stimulate appetite). This construct is frequently measured using the external eating subscale of the Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire (DEBQ; Van Strien, Frijters, Bergers & Defares, 1986). Disgust has been hypothesised to be a universal emotion with an important evolutionary function (e.g., preventing ingestion of potentially harmful substances that can cause illness or disease). This construct is frequently measured using the disgust sensitivity subscale of the Disgust Propensity and Sensitivity Scale – Revised (DPSS-R; Van Overveld, De Jong, Peters, Cavanagh & Davey, 2006). The current study (i.e., simulated data set) uses these two scales to investigate the relationship between eating behaviours and the emotion of disgust.

3 SUMMARY

In the current study, participants were asked to complete the Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire (Van Strien et al., 1986) and Disgust Propensity and Sensitivity Scale – Revised (Van Overveld et al., 2006).

1. Participants signed up for the study via SONA.
2. Participants were provided an Information Sheet (see Appendix A) upon arriving in the lab for their individual session with the Investigator.
3. Participants were asked to complete a Consent Form (see Appendix B).
4. Participants were asked to complete the Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire (see Appendix D) and Disgust Propensity and Sensitivity Scale – Revised (see Appendix E).
5. Participants were provided a Debrief Sheet (see Appendix C).
6. Participants received 0.25 credits of SONA for their 15 minutes of participation.

The current study addresses the following research question: what is the relationship between participants’ external eating behaviours and disgust sensitivity? In other words, is there a significant correlation between participants’ responses on the Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire (Van Strien et al., 1986) and Disgust Propensity and Sensitivity Scale – Revised (Van Overveld et al., 2006)?

4 DATA SET

Each participant was assigned an ID and received 0.25 credits of SONA. In addition to recording their Gender and Age in years, participants’ responses on the critical items of the Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire and Disgust Propensity and Sensitivity Scale – Revised were also recorded. Each of these variables is included in the simulated data set (see also Appendix F).

5 WRITING UP

Like Research Project 1, Research Project 2 should be formatted according to the Reporting Style Guidelines for Practical Reports and Projects. For example, you will include sections for the: Title, Abstract, Introduction, Method (Participants, Design, Materials and Procedure), Results, Discussion, References and Appendices. You will also review prior research, develop motivations and hypotheses, report on the method and results and discuss implications. Another key part of writing up the report will be analysing the data set. For example, you will summarise (descriptive statistics) and draw conclusions about (inferential statistics) the data. Primarily, workshop activities will focus on analysis.

6 REFERENCES

Anschutz, D. J., Van Strien, T., Van De Ven, Monique O.M, & Engels, R. C. M. E. (2009). Eating styles and energy intake in young women. Appetite, 53(1), 119-122.
Mayer, B., Muris, P., Bos, A. E. R., & Suijkerbuijk, C. (2008). Disgust sensitivity and eating disorder symptoms in a non-clinical population. Journal of behavior therapy and experimental psychiatry, 39(4), 504-514.
Van Overveld, W. J. M., De Jong, P. J., Peters, M. L., Cavanagh, K., & Davey, G. C. L. (2006). Disgust propensity and disgust sensitivity: Separate constructs that are differentially related to specific fears. Personality and Individual Differences, 41(7), 1241-1252.
Van Strien, T., Frijters, J. E., Bergers, G. P., & Defares, P. B. (1986). The Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire (DEBQ) for assessment of restrained, emotional, and external eating behavior. International journal of eating disorders, 5(2), 295-315.

Appendix A: Information Sheet
PARTICIPANT INFORMATION SHEET

Title of Project: Disgust and Eating Behaviours
Name of Investigator:

Invitation paragraph: You have been invited to take part in a research study. Please ask if anything is unclear or if you would like more information.
What is the study about: This study investigates disgust and eating behaviours. The aim is to understand individual differences in participants’ responses.
What does the study involve? You will complete questionnaires on disgust and eating behaviours. The study lasts approximately 15 minutes for 0.25 credits of SONA.
Why have I been chosen? You have been invited to participate because you are 18 years of age or older and you do not have a history of disordered eating.
Do I have to take part? It is up to you to decide whether or not to take part.
What if I agree to take part and then change my mind? You are free to withdraw from the study at any time without giving a reason. However, once you have completed the study, you will not be able to withdraw your data.
What are the possible disadvantages and risks of taking part? The primary disadvantage is that you will have to give up some of your time.
What are the possible benefits of taking part? The primary advantage is that you will contribute to science.
What if something goes wrong? / Who can I complain to? Please contact the Investigator or the Administrator for the Ethics Committee.
Will my taking part in this study be kept confidential? All information which is collected about you during the course of the research will be kept on a password protected database and is strictly confidential. You will be given an ID code which will be used instead of your name. Any identifiable information you may give will be removed and anonymised.
Who has reviewed the study? This study has been reviewed and approved by the Ethics Committee.
Contact for Further Information:

Appendix B: Consent Form
CONSENT FORM

Title of Project: Disgust and Eating Behaviours
Name of Investigator:

Please initial if you agree:

1. I confirm that I have read and understood the information sheet. I have had the opportunity to consider the information, ask questions and have had these answered satisfactorily. __

2. I understand that my participation is voluntary and that I am free to withdraw at any time without giving any reason. __

3. I agree to take part in this study. __

_________________________ ________________ _____________
Print name of participant Date Signature

_________________________ ________________ _____________
Print name of person taking consent Date Signature

Appendix C: Debrief Sheet
DEBRIEF SHEET

Title of Project: Disgust and Eating Behaviours
Name of Investigator:

The aim of this study is to understand the relationship between participants’ eating behaviours and their disgust sensitivity. While some individuals show more disgust sensitivity, other individuals show less disgust sensitivity.

Contact for Further Information:

Further support:
If this study has raised any issues that you would like to talk to someone in confidence about, you may wish to contact the following charity:

Thank you for your time.

Appendix D: Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire
Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire (External Eating Subscale)

This questionnaire consists of questions about eating behaviour. Please read each question and think how often it is true for you, then place a ‘x’ in the box that is closest to this.

Item Question Never Seldom Sometimes Often Very Often
1. If food tastes good to you, do you eat more than usual? 1 2 3 4 5
2. If food smells and looks good, do you eat more than usual? 1 2 3 4 5
3. If you see or smell something delicious, do you have a desire to eat it? 1 2 3 4 5
4. If you have something delicious to eat, do you eat it straight away? 1 2 3 4 5
5. If you walk past the baker do you have the desire to buy something delicious? 1 2 3 4 5
6. If you walk past a snackbar or a cafe, do you have the desire to buy something delicious? 1 2 3 4 5
7. If you see others eating, do you also have the desire to eat? 1 2 3 4 5
8. Can you resist eating delicious foods? 1 2 3 4 5
9. Do you eat more than usual, when you see others eating? 1 2 3 4 5
10. When preparing a meal are you inclined to eat something? 1 2 3 4 5

Van Strien, T., Frijters, J. E., Bergers, G. P., & Defares, P. B. (1986). The Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire (DEBQ) for assessment of restrained, emotional, and external eating behavior. International journal of eating disorders, 5(2), 295-315.

Appendix E: Disgust Propensity and Sensitivity Scale-Revised
Disgust Propensity and Sensitivity Scale-Revised

This questionnaire consists of statements about disgust. Please read each statement and think how often it is true for you, then place a ‘x’ in the box that is closest to this.

Item Question Never Rarely Sometimes Often Always
2. When I feel disgusted, I worry that I might pass out. 1 2 3 4 5
3. It scares me when I feel nauseous. 1 2 3 4 5
4. I worry that I might swallow a disgusting thing. 1 2 3 4 5
8. When I notice that I feel nauseous, I worry about vomiting. 1 2 3 4 5
11. It scares me when I faint. 1 2 3 4 5
13. I think disgusting items could cause me illness/infection. 1 2 3 4 5
15. It embarrasses me when I feel disgusted. 1 2 3 4 5
16. I think feeling disgust is bad for me. 1 2 3 4 5

Van Overveld, W. J. M., De Jong, P. J., Peters, M. L., Cavanagh, K., & Davey, G. C. L. (2006). Disgust propensity and disgust sensitivity: Separate constructs that are differentially related to specific fears. Personality and Individual Differences, 41(7), 1241-1252.

Appendix F: Data Set (Overview)
Table 1. Overview of the Research Project 2 data set (ResearchProject2_DataSet).
Name Label Description
ID

Gender
Age
SONA
EE01 – EE10

D02 … D16 Participant
Identification
Gender
Age
SONA Credits
…

… 1 – 50

Male = 1; Female = 2
Years
0.25 SONA Credits
Never = 1; Seldom = 2; Sometimes = 3; Often = 4; Very Often = 5
Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire (Van Strien et al., 1986). The following item is negatively worded: 8.
Never = 1; Rarely = 2; Sometimes = 3; Often = 4; Always = 5
Disgust Propensity and Sensitivity Scale – Revised (Van Overveld et al., 2007). No items are negatively worded. The following items (i.e., reflecting a separate subscale) are not included in the data set: 1, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 12 and 14.