Effects of weight and gender on a task of inattention

• Published in: Eating behaviors : an international journal Vol. 15; no. 4; pp. 574 - 577
• Main Authors: Lange, Krista, Thamotharan, Sneha, Sferra, Michale, Ramos, Ashley, Fields, Sherecce
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Kidlington Elsevier Ltd 01-12-2014; Elsevier
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult and adolescent clinical studies; Attention; Biological and medical sciences; BMI; Body Weight; Eating behavior disorders; Female; Gender; Humans; Impulsive Behavior; Inattention; Male; Medical sciences; Metabolic diseases; Miscellaneous; Obesity; Obesity - psychology; Overweight - psychology; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychopathology. Psychiatry; Sex Factors; Weight status; Young Adult; Weight status; Gender; Inattention; Adolescent; BMI; Human; Obesity; Impulsivity; Body weight; Nutrition disorder; Attention; Sex; Corporal biometry; Cognition; Personality; Experimental study; Overweight; Sociodemographic factor; Nutritional status
• ISSN: 1471-0153; 1873-7358
• DOI: 10.1016/j.eatbeh.2014.08.009

Previous studies have established that obese adolescents possess a stronger tendency to behave more impulsively and be more inattentive than healthy-weight children. Additionally, gender difference in inattention and impulsivity has also been substantiated by previous researchers. The current study examined the relationship between gender, body weight, and inattention and impulsivity in adolescents. It was hypothesized that obese males and females would have more inattentive and impulsive responses than their healthy-weight peers.
Participants were 113 adolescents between the ages of 14 and 19; all participants completed the CPT-II, a measure of inattentive and impulsive response styles.
Findings indicated that males who were classified as overweight or obese scored higher on inattention than did obese females, healthy-weight males, and healthy-weight females. Additionally, females committed a greater number of commission errors and were less able to distinguish the target stimuli, suggestive of impulsive responding.
These findings indicate a gender difference in regard to impulsive responding, and also reveal an interaction of weight status and gender on inattention. Implications for prevention and treatment are discussed.
•Novel findings for the interaction of weight and gender on a task of inattention•Overweight males make more omissions than healthy weight males and all females.•Findings suggest the importance of considering inattention in overweight males.•Females commit more commissions, thus sacrifice accuracy independent of weight status.