Abstract
BackgroundThis study examined the mediating effect of sense of control and the moderating effect of coronavirus stress on the relationship between life history strategy and overeating among Chinese college students during the COVID-19 period.Methods3310 Chinese students (Mage = 19.74, SD = 1.50; 47% males) completed self-reported questionnaires regarding life history strategy, sense of control, overeating, and coronavirus stress. The data were analyzed using Pearson’s r correlations and moderated mediation analysis.ResultsThe results revealed that control sense mediated the link between life history strategy and college students’ overeating. College students’ coronavirus stress moderated the associations between life history strategy and college students’ sense of control and between control sense and overeating. The association between life history strategy and sense of control was stronger for those with lower coronavirus stress, and the association between sense of control and overeating was stronger for those with lower coronavirus stress.ConclusionsThis study identified that the critical factors were associated with overeating. On the one hand, the research deepens the application and interpretation of life history theory in the field of eating; on the other hand, it provides evidence for the prevention of overeating, and provides theoretical basis for psychological assistance among Chinese college students.
Highlights
The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is an infectious respiratory virus, declared a global pandemic on 11th March 2020 [1]
No research has investigated whether the life history strategy of college students is significantly associated with overeating and examine the potential mediating and moderating mechanisms in this association
With the aid of 3310 participants, we found that, life history strategy was linked to college students’ overeating
Summary
The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is an infectious respiratory virus, declared a global pandemic on 11th March 2020 [1]. Previous studies have suggested an increase in anxiety and depressive symptoms which negative impacts on psychological health could provoke the overeating of unhealthy food and result in weight gain [5,6,7,8,9]. Recent research reported that many individuals report increased binge eating, overeating, using food to cope with Coronavirus stress, and unhealthy food intake during the COVID-19 pandemic [10,11,12]. This study examined the mediating effect of sense of control and the moderating effect of coronavirus stress on the relationship between life history strategy and overeating among Chinese college students during the COVID-19 period
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
