This study examined the effectiveness of the addition of a cognitive intervention based on individualized assessment to a behavioral intervention for obesity. Overweight subjects (N=63) were randomly assigned to either a behavioral intervention or a behavioral intervention combined with a cognitive intervention which focused on changing specific…

Individual variability in response to behavioral weight loss programs remains an unresolved and perplexing issue for health psychologists. Determining in advance who will succeed or fail at losing weight would be useful in devising programs that produce a more homogeneous and dramatic response to treatment. In order to examine which responses to…

In the past few years, a comprehensive behavioral treatment program has often been the treatment of choice for obesity. The basis for these techniques is the energy balance model of weight control. Obese adults (N=28) completed a 10-week behavioral weight control program and were subsequently monitored during a 2-year follow-up period. During…

Research related to the importance of involving parents directly in treatment programming for childhood obesity has provided inconclusive results because of methodological problems and relatively short treatment duration periods. The effectiveness of an extended behavioral weight control program was evaluated during a 10-week treatment phase and…

The use of behavioral contracting in exercise programs has been shown to be effective in increasing the frequency of exercise activity and in reducing dropout rates. A study was undertaken to examine the impact of three cardiovascular risk factors (poor physical fitness, obesity, and smoking) on both client willingness to sign a behavioral…

To test the effectiveness of behavioral approaches to weight control, 18 adult mentally retarded subjects were randomly assigned to a behavioral therapy or to a no-treatment control group. Behavioral therapy involved exposure to external and self reinforcement, stimulus control, simplified monitoring and recording, and energy expenditure…

The possible influence of cognitive dissonance in psychotherapy was examined by conceptualizing therapy as an effort justification process. It was predicted that freely choosing to undergo a highly effortful procedure would aid in positive therapeutic change. Subjects (N=52) participated in a weight-reduction experiment in which the degree of…

Three areas of research have supported the conceptual relevance of Reduced Environmental Stimulation (RES) techniques in the management of psychological dependencies. First, preliminary studies through the late l960's indicated that relatively short periods of RES had a facilitative effect on the type of subject who might be most vulnerable to…

Relapses in alcoholics, smokers, and heroin users are frequently provoked by stress. Individuals often return to using addictive substances when feeling angry or frustrated as the result of negative mood states, interpersonal conflict, or social pressure. A behavioral weight-control program used to treat 140 overweight college students was…

This description of a weight reduction program, based on generalizations derived from eight years of work with overweight persons, discusses the clients' rationalization of overeating behaviors. In this behavior modification program, the client is required to permanently give up one high calorie food and to write down all foods eaten before actual…

Because of the higher-than-average risk of hypertension, obesity, and diabetes among Hispanics, researchers selected these three health problems as the focus of a "radio novela" intended to increase the health knowledge and awareness of a Hispanic target audience and to stimulate their response to the problems. The replicable health…