Positive thinking 'key to weight loss'

Thursday, 16 June 2011 2:35 PM

Positive thoughts, or magical thinking is essential in any diet or healthy eating plan, according to an alternative new report. According to the Journal of Consumer Research, magical thinking occurs when an individual uses mystical forces to influence situations.

The authors Yannik St. James (HEC Montreal), Jay M. Handelman, and Shirley F. Taylor (both Queen's University, Kingston, Canada) say positive thinking is essential in stressful situations such as being overweight.

They describe weight loss as being influenced by mysterious forces, such as a body that "conspires" against them or food that "seduces" them.

"Programs directed at correcting fallacious consumer knowledge and enjoining consumers to exert greater self-control might be of limited value," the report says.

"Indeed, these approaches eliminate certain consumer coping strategies without affecting the source of stress - the cultural expectation to be thin in a culture that entices consumers with endless unhealthy food and lifestyle alternatives." 

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