Browsing by Author "Nieborowska, Victoria"

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    Revictimization from Childhood to Adulthood and Disordered Eating in Women
    (2023-09-17) Nieborowska, Victoria; Russell-Mayhew, Michelle Kathleen; Nordstokke, David; Domene, Jose; Sears, Christopher; Dionne, Michelle
    Revictimization, defined as risk for and those who have experienced subsequent trauma following initial trauma exposure, has been gaining research attention due to its myriad of psychological consequences; however, less is known about its link with disordered eating. Women are particularly vulnerable to both revictimization and disordered eating. The purpose of this dissertation study was to investigate the association between revictimization from childhood to adulthood and disordered eating among women and the mediating role of posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and complex posttraumatic symptoms (CPTSS) in these relationships. As difficulties in emotion regulation are implicated in disordered eating and trauma symptoms, it was also examined whether the link between revictimization, trauma-related symptoms, and disordered eating were stronger if women exhibited higher emotion regulation impairment. This was assessed by conducting moderated mediation using structural equation modelling (SEM). A total sample of 563 women between 19 to 65 years of age were recruited from an online research participation platform (Prolific) and completed an online survey comprised of several self-report measures, such as the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale – Short Form, Eating Disorder Examination Questionnaire, International Trauma Questionnaire, and a victimization and revictimization questionnaire created for this study. Results of the SEM moderated mediation analysis found that revictimization was significantly associated with higher disordered eating in women. The findings also indicated that CPTSS mediated the link between revictimization and disordered eating, while emotion regulation did not moderate the pathways from revictimization to CPTSS and CTPSS to disordered eating. Post-hoc analyses revealed that emotion regulation difficulties significantly mediated the effects of revictimization on disordered eating. Together, these findings highlight the need for more integrated evidence-based interventions to address revictimization and disordered eating in women with such comorbid presentations.
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    Rumination as a Psychological Risk Factor for Body Dissatisfaction in Middle-Aged Women
    (2019-09-12) Nieborowska, Victoria; Russell-Mayhew, Shelly K.; Nordstokke, David W.; Sears, Christopher R.
    In a society that promotes anti-aging, sociocultural pressures for a young and thin body type negatively affects body image and mental health in aging women. However, little is known about how women in middle adulthood experience body dissatisfaction. Given that cognitive appraisal is a component of body dissatisfaction, this study aimed to investigate whether perseverative negative thinking about one’s body, assessed by ruminative brooding and reflection, contributed to body dissatisfaction in midlife women. In order to better understand the link between rumination and body dissatisfaction, depression, trait anxiety, self-esteem, and quality of life were utilized as mediators. A sample of 351 women between 40 to 65 years of age from the United States were recruited from Amazon Mechanical Turk and completed several self-report measures. The findings revealed that ruminative brooding significantly predicted body dissatisfaction, compared to ruminative reflection. Additionally, depression, trait anxiety, self-esteem, and quality of life partially mediated the relationship between ruminative brooding and body dissatisfaction. The findings suggested that ruminative brooding might be an underlying mechanism of body dissatisfaction in middle-aged women. Implications for counselling and research highlight the importance of addressing negative self-focused thinking about one’s body and its potential consequences.