The Relationship of Behavioral Inflexibility and Sensory Sensitivities on Selective Eating Behaviors in Young Adults

Objective Selective eating is well-studied in childhood, yet little is known about how it presents in young adulthood. Prior research has linked both behavioral inflexibility and sensory sensitivity to selective eating in children and adolescents, though these traits have rarely been examined together in young adult samples. The present study examined whether behavioral inflexibility and sensory sensitivity were associated with four facets of selective eating (e.g., food neophobia, individual food selectivity, food quality selectivity, and Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) symptomatology) in a community sample of young adults. Methods Participants were 481 young adults ages 18–26 recruited from an undergraduate psychology participant pool who completed an online survey. Four simultaneous multiple regression analyses examined behavioral inflexibility and sensory sensitivity in relation to each selective eating outcome, with sex assigned at birth included as a covariate across models. Results Behavioral inflexibility was significantly positively correlated with all four selective eating outcomes and was the most consistent correlate across all regression models. Sensory sensitivity was associated with individual food selectivity only, and females reported greater individual food selectivity than males. In addition, 12.6% of participants had elevated scores on an ARFID screening subscale, a rate higher than community prevalence estimates. Takeaways These findings underscore the importance of examining selective eating beyond childhood and suggest that behavioral inflexibility in particular may be a trait-level contributor to selective eating in young adulthood. Future research should investigate additional contributing factors and develop targeted interventions for those impacted by selective eating.