%0 Journal Article
%T Body-focused Anxiety in Women: Associations with  Internalization of the Thin-ideal, Dieting Frequency, Body Mass Index and Media Effects
%A Aileen Pidgeon
%A Rachel A. Harker
%J Open Journal of Medical Psychology
%P 17-24
%@ 2165-9389
%D 2013
%I Scientific Research Publishing
%R 10.4236/ojmp.2013.24B004
%X <p class=\"MsoNormal\">
	<span lang=\"EN-US\">Exposure to media that portrays thin women as ideal and
attractive</span><span lang=\"EN-US\"> </span><span lang=\"EN-US\">can lead to women internalizing the thin ideal, which results in</span><span lang=\"EN-US\"> </span><span lang=\"EN-US\">incorporating</span><span lang=\"EN-US\"> </span><span lang=\"EN-US\">societal
standards of thinness into belief systems. Internalization of the thin-ideal is
associated with numerous detrimental effects on women, including decreased
levels of self-esteem and increased levels of body-focused anxiety, negative
emotions and disordered eating. The present study utilized a sample of women (<i>N = </i>208) aged between 18 and 67 years <i>(M </i>= 29.44, <i>SD </i>= 13.08) to examine the relationship between</span><span lang=\"EN-US\"> </span><span lang=\"EN-US\">internalization
of the thin-</span><span lang=\"EN-US\"> </span><span lang=\"EN-US\">ideal, body-focused anxiety, body mass index (BMI), and dieting
frequency. Correlational, regression and mediation analyses conducted on the
data showed</span><span lang=\"EN-US\"> </span><span lang=\"EN-US\">that</span><span lang=\"EN-US\"> </span><span lang=\"EN-US\">internalization of the thin-ideal, BMI and dieting frequency</span><span lang=\"EN-US\"> </span><span lang=\"EN-US\">significantly
contributed to body-focused anxiety in women. In addition, body-focused anxiety
fully</span><span lang=\"EN-US\"> </span><span lang=\"EN-US\">mediated the relationship between internalization</span><span lang=\"EN-US\"> </span><span lang=\"EN-US\">of the
thin-ideal and dieting frequency among women. BMI did not moderate the
relationship between internalization of the thin-ideal and body-focused,
indicating that women who internalize the thin-ideal are less vulnerable to
dieting unless experiencing body-focused anxiety. The results of the current
study enhance our understanding of the relationship between internalization of
the thin-ideal, body-focused anxiety, BMI, and dieting frequency among women.
Clinical implications will be discussed</span><span lang=\"EN-US\">.<o:p></o:p></span>
</p>
%K Body-focused Anxiety
%K Internalization of the Thin-ideal
%K BMI
%K Dieting
%U http://www.scirp.org/journal/PaperInformation.aspx?PaperID=38293