Eating attitudes among college students in Malaysia: an ethnic and gender comparison

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine whether there are gender and ethnic differences in eating attitudes among ethnic Malay and ethnic Chinese college students in Malaysia, and whether eating attitudes are related to BMI and measures of self-dissatisfaction and separation anxiety. The Eating Attitudes Test-26 (EAT-26), the Separation Anxiety Symptom Inventory, and a self-dissatisfaction scale were administered to 187 Malay and 80 Chinese students. There were no sex differences in disordered eating attitudes for either ethnic group, however, Malay students scored higher on the EAT-26 than the Chinese students. Separation anxiety was related to EAT-26 scores among female participants but not among males. Levels of self-dissatisfaction were associated with EAT-26 scores among Malay males and Chinese females. Contrary to findings commonly found among Westerners, there were no gender differences in disordered eating attitudes among college students in Malaysia. However, there were gender differences in what factors were associated with disordered eating attitudes.

Eating attitudes and barriers to healthy eating and physical activity among a sample of university students in Egypt

“…In agreement with these results; Edman and Yates [26] reported no sex effect on EAT score. However, our results disagree with a study performed in Singapore [22] , Israel [27] , and in Jordan, Libya, Palestine, and Syria [16] which showed that the female students had DEAs more than men.…”

Eating Attitudes, Self-Dissatisfaction and Emotional Distress Among Early Adolescents in Hawai'i: A Gender Comparison

“…In a study examining disordered eating attitudes among a sample of college students, Edman and Yates (2005) found that Filipino American male college students residing in Hawai'i reported higher levels of body dissatisfaction and disordered eating attitudes than Caucasian males. International studies also suggest that Asian males may be at high risk for eating pathology, as a study among nearly 300 college students in Malaysia found that males reported similar eating attitudes as females (Edman & Yates, 2004a). Similar findings were observed among a sample of more than 900 high school students in the Philippines as no gender differences were found on disordered eating attitudes (Lorenzo, Lavori, & Lock, 2002).…”

“…A growing number of cross-cultural studies have been conducted examining risk of disordered eating among Asian and Asian-American males, and findings suggest that some Asian males may be at high risk for eating problems (Edman & Yates, 2004a). For example, findings from a large sample of more than 4000 adolescents in urban American found that Asian-American boys were more likely to report overeating than boys from other groups (Ackard, Neumark-Sztainer, Story & Perry; and no gender differences in body esteem were found among a sample of 73 Hmong-American adolescents (Franzoi & Chang, 2002).…”

Further Validation of the Self-Loathing Subscale as a Screening Tool for Eating Disorders

“…The possible use of the SLSS as a screening tool for eating disorders emerged when research showed that the SLSS effectively discriminated between patients who had been diagnosed with eating disorders and a control group (Yates et al, 1999), obese patients from nonobese controls (Yates et al, 2001), and athletes reporting eating disorders from athletes reporting no disorders (Yates et al, 2003). SLSS scores are positively correlated with scores on subscales of the Eating Disorders Inventory Edman & Yates, 2004a) and the EAT-26 (Edman & Yates, 2004b). The SLSS has been validated in cross-cultural samples such as Pacific Islanders (Edman & Yates, 2004a), African Americans (Aruguete, DeBord, Yates, & Edman, 2005), Filipino Americans , and Chinese and Malaysians (Edman & Yates 2004b).…”

“…SLSS scores are positively correlated with scores on subscales of the Eating Disorders Inventory Edman & Yates, 2004a) and the EAT-26 (Edman & Yates, 2004b). The SLSS has been validated in cross-cultural samples such as Pacific Islanders (Edman & Yates, 2004a), African Americans (Aruguete, DeBord, Yates, & Edman, 2005), Filipino Americans , and Chinese and Malaysians (Edman & Yates 2004b). Draeger (2005) suggests that the SLSS can be used to identify possible eating disorders among obligatory exercisers, who might be particularly likely to conceal symptoms of eating disorders (Yates et al, 2001).…”