The Effect of Motivational Interviewing with Online Group on Eating Behaviors, Healthy Lifestyle Behaviors, and Quality of Life in Nursing Students with Food Addiction: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this randomized controlled trial is to assess the effect of motivational interviewing (MI) with online group on eating behaviors, healthy lifestyle behaviors, and quality of life in nursing students with food addic-tion (FA).

Methods: A total of 59 students meeting the diagnostic criteria for FA were randomly assigned to the intervention group (n = 29) or the control group (n = 30). The intervention group received weekly MI sessions for 5 weeks. Data were collected using standardized measures of FA, healthy lifestyle behaviors, and quality of life through the Yale Food Addiction Scale (YFAS), the Healthy Lifestyle Behaviors Scale-II (HLBS-II), and the Quality of Life Survey Short Form (SF-36). This randomized controlled trial was conducted at 3 universities in Türkiye between September 2021 and March 2022. Data were analyzed using a Generalized Linear Model.

Results: After the intervention, the intervention group had significantly higher mean scores of HLBS-II compared to the control group (t = 3.195, P = .002). However, no significant differences were observed between the groups in terms of YFAS or SF-36 scores (P > .05). Conclusion: The findings suggest that MI effectively promoted healthy lifestyle behaviors in students with FA. clinictrials.gov id: NCT05046938

Cite this article as: Işık M, Demir S. The effect of motivational interviewing with online group on eating behaviors, healthy lifestyle behaviors, and quality of life in nursing students with food addiction: a randomized controlled trial. Arch Health Sci Res. 2026, 13, 0036, doi:10.5152/ArcHealthSciRes.2026.25036.