University of Massachusetts Medical School Faculty Publications
Title
Weight loss motivations: a latent class analysis approach
UMMS Affiliation
Department of Medicine, Division of Preventive and Behavioral Medicine
Publication Date
2014-07-01
Document Type
Article
Subjects
Adult; Body Mass Index; Cross-Sectional Studies; Female; Humans; Logistic Models; Male; Middle Aged; *Motivation; Odds Ratio; Overweight; *Weight Loss
Disciplines
Behavior and Behavior Mechanisms | Community Health and Preventive Medicine | Public Health
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To identify subgroups of adults with respect to weight loss motivations and assess factors associated with subgroup membership.
METHOD: A cross-sectional survey among 414 overweight/ obese employees in 12 Massachusetts high schools was conducted. Latent class analysis (LCA) defined distinct weight loss motivation classes. Multinomial logistic regression assessed participant characteristics with class membership.
RESULTS: Three classes emerged: improving health; improving health and looking/feeling better; and improving health, looking/feeling, better and improving personal/social life. Compared to class 1, class 2 was more likely to be female and younger and class 3 was more likely to be female, younger, have children at home, and perceive themselves as very over-weight.
CONCLUSIONS: Findings can inform targeted weight loss interventions.
DOI of Published Version
10.5993/AJHB.38.4.14
Source
Am J Health Behav. 2014 Jul;38(4):605-13. doi: 10.5993/AJHB.38.4.14. Link to article on publisher's site
Related Resources
Journal/Book/Conference Title
American journal of health behavior
PubMed ID
24636123
Repository Citation
Lemon, Stephenie C.; Schneider, Kristin L.; Wang, Monica L.; Liu, Qin; Magner, Robert P.; Estabrook, Barbara; Druker, Susan; and Pbert, Lori, "Weight loss motivations: a latent class analysis approach" (2014). University of Massachusetts Medical School Faculty Publications. 707.
https://escholarship.umassmed.edu/faculty_pubs/707