The Effect of Social Media Use on Emotional Eating in Women Aged 19-45

Abstract

Aim: This study aims to examine the relationship between social media use and emotional eating in women. Material and Method: The study was cross-sectional and was conducted with 401 women aged 19-45 years living in Kadıköy, İstanbul. The introductory information form consisting of 4 stages, the Dutch Eating Behavior Questionnaire (DEBQ), Eating Attitude Test (EAT-40), and Social Media Usage Scale (SMUS) were applied to the participants of the study. Statistical analyzes were evaluated using the SPSS 23 package program. Results: It was seen that 22.9% (n=92) of the participants were between the ages of 19-29, 57.1% (n=229) were between the ages of 30-39, and 20.0% (n=80) were between the ages of 40-45. According to the results of the analysis, there was no significant relationship between SMUS sub-dimensions, total SMUS scores and EAT-40 scores (p>0.05). In the continuance sub- dimension of the SMUS, a low-level significant positive correlation was found between emotional eating (r=0.203; p<0.001), external eating (r=0.233; p<0.001), and total DEBQ scores (r=0.183; p<0.001). Conclusion: It has been observed that there is a very low positive relationship between social media use and emotional eating.