Causal beliefs about obesity and associated health behaviors: results from a population-based survey

Table 1 Descriptive Statistics for the Demographic Characteristics and Obesity Causal Belief Items

	Unweighted Sample Size (n)	Weighted Sample %
Sex
Male	1372	48.9
Female	2159	51.1
Missing (n)	3
Age (years) (M = 45.6)
18-39	860	39.8
40-49	644	20.4
50-59	809	17.0
60-69	603	10.8
≥ 70	573	12.0
Missing (n)	45
Race/ethnicity
Hispanic	309	12.5
Non-Hispanic white	2460	69.5
Non-Hispanic black	431	11.5
Non-Hispanic other	225	6.5
Missing (n)	109
Education
Less than high school	306	13.8
High school graduate	805	24.4
Some college	1130	36.8
College graduate	1269	25.0
Missing (n)	24
Body mass index (M = 27.6)
Not overweight/obese (BMI < 25 kg/m²)	1286	37.3
Overweight (BMI 25-29.9 kg/m²)	1168	34.0
Obese (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m²)	1018	28.7
Missing (n)	62
Belief that obesity is inherited
Not at all	334	9.7
A little	890	25.2
Some	1670	46.4
A lot	627	18.6
Missing (n)	13
Belief that obesity is caused by overeating and not exercising
Not at all
A little	30	0.8
Some	132	4.0
A lot	817	22.8
Missing (n)	2542	72.4
	13

Note. N = 3,534. Data are from respondents who completed a paper and pencil mailed survey for the 2007 Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS).

ISSN: 1479-5868