Health Belief Model Offers Opportunities for Designing Weight Management Interventions for College Students.

Objective: Identify weight-related beliefs of college students and test the predictive power of the Health Belief Model for body mass index (BMI).

Design: Cross-sectional online survey with beliefs measured on 5-point scales.

Setting: University in North Carolina.

Participants: Undergraduates (n = 516; 91.9%), females (n = 399; 71.3%), white non-Hispanic students (n = 507; 86.2%), and 20.3% of overweight or obese status.

Variables Measured: Perceived severity, susceptibility, barriers, benefits, and internal and external cues to action.

Analysis: One-way ANOVA and regression. Significance was P < .05.

Results: Strongest beliefs concerned benefits of healthy eating and physical activity (mean, 4.1 ± 0.7); weakest beliefs concerned barriers to adopting such behaviors (mean, 2.6 ± 0.9). The regression model was statistically significant (P < .001) and explained 17% of variance in BMI (multivariate coefficient = 0.177). Perceived severity, susceptibility, external cues, barriers, and benefits predicted BMI.

Conclusions And Implications: Several beliefs were identified that could serve as the basis for weight-related interventions addressing specific concerns, needs, and goals of college students.