Description
The dietary behaviors and body image attitudes of the people of developing nations are quickly changing as many of these countries experience a nutrition transition. This transition is characterized by a shift from the traditional diet to one influenced by the Western world. There are many components to the nutrition transition, but the two main forces are cultural (including Western media) and economic influences that bring about the shifts in behavior and attitude. This study will add to the research on the nutrition transition by examining data from a non-representative sample of 199 female adolescents in Jordan. There are two hypotheses for this study. First is that the nutrition transition exists within this population and will be supported with high rates of restrained eating, as found in past research involving older Jordanian females. Second, media influence will help to explain the nutrition transition within this population. A linear regression was run using SPSS version 21.0 to assess the significance of the variables representing the nutrition transition. Significant results for the IES Total and the MFES Emotional scale were found suggesting that programming to promote intuitive eating within the population could be helpful in preventing further progression of the nutrition transition. Possibilities for future research are also discussed.
