Clarifying the relationship between intuitive eating, mindful eating, and maladaptive eating: A factor analytic study

Summary

This study sought to clarify how intuitive eating, mindful eating, and several maladaptive eating patterns relate to one another and to wellbeing outcomes. Two samples of women (n = 400 and n = 423; mean age around 24) completed measures of intuitive eating, mindful eating, disinhibited eating, dietary restraint and restriction, and orthorexic tendencies. Exploratory factor analysis in the first sample suggested a five-factor structure, which was then supported by confirmatory factor analysis in the second sample. A Disinhibited Eating factor, combining emotional, external, and under-controlled eating, emerged as the maladaptive dimension, showing moderate associations with clinical impairment and lower psychological wellbeing. The findings help distinguish adaptive from maladaptive eating styles within a single measurement framework.