Body Perception and Body Dissatisfaction: A Longitudinal Examination of Body Image and Disordered Eating Symptoms

Magel, Chantelle A.

Body Perception and Body Dissatisfaction: A Longitudinal Examination of Body Image and Disordered Eating Symptoms

dc.contributor.advisor	von Ranson, Kristin
dc.contributor.author	Magel, Chantelle A.
dc.contributor.committeemember	Tomfohr-Madsen, Lianne
dc.contributor.committeemember	Madigan, Sheri
dc.date.accessioned	2023-07-27T18:51:28Z
dc.date.available	2023-07-27T18:51:28Z
dc.date.issued	2023-07-24
dc.description.abstract	Introduction: Body size perception and attitudes towards the body (e.g., body dissatisfaction) are two distinct but interconnected components of body image. The relationship between body perceptions and disordered eating is poorly understood. The objective of this project was to examine body size perception and elucidate how it changes and relates to disordered eating behaviours and attitudes across development when compared to body dissatisfaction. Method: In three studies, we analyzed data from the Minnesota Twin Family Study (MTFS), a population-based, prospective study of 1,359 predominantly (95%) White, reared-together female twins ranging from age 10 to 33, in which participants completed assessments approximately every three to five years. Study 1 examined the psychometric properties of a scale used to measure body size perception (Body Rating Scales (BRS); Chapter 2); Study 2 investigated the developmental trajectories of body mass index (BMI) and BRS body size perception scores across the study period (Chapter 3); and Study 3 compared the degree to which BMI, BRS body size perception scores, and body dissatisfaction impacted disordered eating behaviours and attitudes over time (Chapter 4). Results: In Study 1, the psychometric properties of the BRS support its validity as a measure of body size perception in girls and women. In Study 2, participants generally selected increasingly large perceived actual body sizes and increasingly small ideal body sizes across time and development, resulting in widening discrepancies between actual and ideal body size ratings until approximately age 30. In Study 3, body perception variables (i.e., larger actual body size ratings, smaller ideal body size, and greater actual-ideal discrepancies) predicted subsequent elevated disordered eating behaviours and attitudes across time more strongly than did body dissatisfaction as measured by self-report questionnaire ratings. Conclusion: Our results suggest that the BRS is a psychometrically-sound tool that may be used to evaluate body perception quickly and easily. Further, this research advances understanding of how body perceptions and ideals change across development, and highlights their relationship with subsequent disordered eating.
dc.identifier.citation	Magel, C. A. (2023). Body perception and body dissatisfaction: a longitudinal examination of body image and disordered eating symptoms (Doctoral thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca.
dc.identifier.uri	https://hdl.handle.net/1880/116800
dc.identifier.uri	https://dx.doi.org/10.11575/PRISM/41642
dc.language.iso	en
dc.publisher.faculty	Graduate Studies
dc.publisher.institution	University of Calgary
dc.rights	University of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission.
dc.subject	body perception
dc.subject	body image
dc.subject	disordered eating
dc.subject	development
dc.subject	longitudinal
dc.subject.classification	Psychology--Clinical
dc.subject.classification	Psychology--Developmental
dc.title	Body Perception and Body Dissatisfaction: A Longitudinal Examination of Body Image and Disordered Eating Symptoms
dc.type	doctoral thesis
thesis.degree.discipline	Psychology – Clinical
thesis.degree.grantor	University of Calgary
thesis.degree.name	Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
ucalgary.thesis.accesssetbystudent	I do not require a thesis withhold – my thesis will have open access and can be viewed and downloaded publicly as soon as possible.