The effects of fat talk on body dissatisfaction and eating behavior: The moderating role of dietary restraint

Although research suggests that fat talk, the normalized conversations that involve degrading one's body shape/weight and size, can increase body dissatisfaction and disordered eating behavior, the extent to which dietary restraint may moderate these relationships remains uncertain. A pilot study (N = 30) comparing online videos with researcher-developed vignettes as prospective manipulations for fat talk exposure suggested use of the vignettes as potent yet subtle stimuli. In the main study, women undergraduates (N = 116) were randomized to read a fat talk or neutral vignette and then completed standardized measures of body dissatisfaction and dietary restraint while being concurrently presented with food stimuli. Results suggest significant moderation effects for dietary restraint: whereas fat talk exposure was associated with increased body dissatisfaction among low dietary restrainers, it appeared to reduce food consumption among high dietary restrainers. Findings highlight the importance of individual differences in shaping responses to fat talk.     

Does body dissatisfaction have the same meaning for males and females? A measurement invariance study

ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to assess the psychometric equivalence of body dissatisfaction (BD) between males and females.MethodTwo scales, BD and Drive to Thinness (DT), from the Eating Disorder Inventory-3 were evaluated. The sample was comprised of 1616 adolescent males and 1429 adolescent females. Factorial invariance across gender of two scales was assessed in order to evaluate the equivalence of scores.ResultsThe results showed full invariance for the DT scale items, and partial invariance for BD scale items. The content analysis of the items confirmed that items related to the perception of thighs, stomach and hips showed differential functioning across gender.ConclusionsDifferent representation of the BD construct between males and females was concluded, and caution was recommended in assessing and interpreting BD in male samples with questionnaires designed for women.     

Lived Experiences of Subclinical Eating Disorder: Female Students' Perceptions

The aim of this study was to obtain an “insiders' perspective” on the lived experience of Subclinical Eating Disorder (SED) in female university students. Participants were 30 white, undergraduate females from the Potchefstroom campus of the North-West University in South African, (age range 18 years 6 months to 22 years). Data were collected using focus group interviews, drawings, letter-writing and self-reflective researcher field notes (Brocki & Wearden, 2006; Morse, 2003). For the analysis, the constant comparative text analysis method (Willig, 2001) was used. Emergent themes from the analysis included four main categories namely: Intra-, Interpersonal, Existential and Body-image. Subcategories of these themes spanned the following: Personal Brokenness, Personal Shame, Perceived Personal Inadequacy and Enslavement, Existential Vacuum, Perceived Social Pressure, Perceived Social Isolation and Body-image Dysfunction. Results were indicative of underestimation of SED-severity, its detrimental impact on participants' psychological well-being and high risk for escalation into full-blown eating disorders. An integrated, risk-protective model of secondary prevention, contextualised within psycho-social developmental perspectives is essential to understand SED in young adults.     

The role of media and peer influences in Australian women's attitudes towards cosmetic surgery

The study aimed to examine the influence of media and peers on attitudes towards cosmetic surgery using a sociocultural framework. A sample of 351 Australian women aged 18–69 years completed measures of media exposure, friend conversations, internalisation of appearance ideals, appearance comparison, body dissatisfaction, and attitudes towards cosmetic surgery. Correlational analysis showed that almost all media and friend variables were significantly correlated with positive attitudes towards cosmetic surgery. A structural equation model based on the sociocultural model showed a good level of fit to the data. The effects of media exposure and friend conversations on body dissatisfaction and attitudes towards cosmetic surgery were mediated by internalisation. We concluded that media exposure and friend conversations affected attitudes towards cosmetic surgery both directly and indirectly. Our results contribute to the understanding of the sociocultural mechanisms underlying women's motivations for cosmetic surgery.     

Do These Norms Make Me Look Fat? The Effect of Exposure to Others’ Body Preferences on Personal Body Ideals

In this study we examined the influence of normative body ideals in the form of perceived peer preferences on personal body ideals and body dissatisfaction Participants (N = 146 female college students) were exposed to the purported preferences of peers representing either relatively thin or heavy body ideals. Along with the normative body ideal manipulation, the gender of the purported peers was manipulated. Participants then selected their ideal for their own body and body dissatisfaction was measured. Women selected a thinner personal body ideal in the thin norm condition than in the heavy norm condition. This effect was seen irrespective of the gender of the purported peers. Body dissatisfaction was not influenced by the manipulation. The malleability of body image and the influence of social factors on ideal body size are discussed.     

Gratitude buffers the adverse effect of viewing the thin ideal on body dissatisfaction

Gratitude has robust associations with multiple aspects of well-being. However, little research has explored whether the psychological benefits of gratitude extend to body image. We used a repeated measures experimental design to test whether a brief period of grateful reflection would buffer the adverse effect of exposure to thin-ideal media. Female undergraduates (N = 67) completed three sessions one week apart. The conditions were specifically designed to isolate (a) the effects of viewing thin models on body dissatisfaction and (b) the moderating effect of grateful contemplation. Results showed that body dissatisfaction scores were lower for women who engaged in a brief period of grateful contemplation before viewing photographs of thin models than for women who reflected upon life hassles before viewing the same photographs. The magnitude of this decrease depended on BMI. Gratitude offers an innovative direction for future research directed toward helping women to accept their bodies.     

‘Retouch free’: The effect of labelling media images as not digitally altered on women's body dissatisfaction

This study aimed to investigate the effect of ‘retouch free’ labels on thin ideal fashion images on women's body dissatisfaction. This represents an experimental analogue to current practice by some fashion magazines. Participants were 224 female undergraduates who viewed a set of fashion shoots with either no label, or a label indicating that the image had not been digitally altered. Results indicated that, although body dissatisfaction increased after exposure to the thin ideal images, there was no significant effect of label type on mood or body dissatisfaction. It was concluded that labelling images as digitally unaltered appears neither helpful nor harmful in terms of body dissatisfaction. Nevertheless, more extensive research is required to guide the most effective use of labels.     

Avatar body dimensions and men's body image

Two online surveys examined the significance of the visual analogues, or ‘avatars’, men (total N = 266) create and use online. Two-dimensional (adiposity × muscle) somatomorphic matrices revealed that avatars are generally thinner than their creator's actual body and similar to their ideal, but more muscular than either their actual or ideal. Men's ratings of the importance of their avatar's appearance correlated with their actual weight and muscle concerns, and disparity between their avatar and actual body dimensions predicted their offline context body change concerns additional to that accounted for by disparity between their ideal and actual bodies. Together with the observation that men also reported higher self-esteem, less social interaction anxiety and less social phobia while online (which correlated with the time they spent online), these results suggest that the physical dimensions of avatars used in social interactions online may serve a compensatory function.     

Self-Oriented Body Comparison and Self-Compassion: Interactive Models of Disordered Eating Behaviors Among Postpartum Women

Evidence suggests self-oriented body comparison (comparison of one’s postpartum body shape and weight to one’s prepregnant body shape and weight) is a critical factor associated with increased levels of disordered eating during the postpartum period. However, some postpartum women adopt a self-compassionate and acceptance-based perspective toward their body shape and weight changes. It is unclear whether self-compassion may buffer the associations between self-comparisons and disordered eating behaviors among postpartum women, which is the aim of the current study. A total of 306 postpartum women who gave birth in the past year completed an online survey asking about self-compassion, social comparison, broad eating pathology, dietary restraint, and binge eating. Results indicated that self-compassion appeared to buffer the associations between self-comparison and broad eating pathology and binge eating among postpartum women, such that for women with above-average levels of self-compassion, the associations between self-comparison and disordered eating was weaker than for women with average or below-average levels of self-compassion. Findings suggest self-compassion could be a potential target for intervention programs.     

Bulimic symptomatology: the role of adaptive perfectionism, shape and weight concern, and self-esteem

An interactive model implicating high perfectionism, high weight and shape concern, and low self-esteem in the onset and maintenance of bulimic symptoms ( [Bardone et?al., 2000] and [Vohs et?al., 1999] ) has received mixed support. This study aimed to replicate the cross-sectional model in a clinical sample of women with eating disorders, and to investigate whether the model could predict changes in binge eating and purging at the end of treatment. Eating disorder outpatients (n = 353) completed measures of perfectionism, weight/shape concern, self-esteem, and bulimic symptoms at pre-treatment and discharge. Contrary to the hypotheses, the three-way interaction did not predict binge eating or purging cross-sectionally or prospectively as a moderator of psychotherapy outcome. It was concluded that the robustness of the interactive model seems questionable and may be impacted by an inadequate conceptualization of the perfectionism construct.