Body‐related attentional bias as mediator of the relationship between body mass index and body dissatisfaction
Body image disturbance, consisting of an affective (body dissatisfaction) and perceptual (body distortion) component, is not only found in eating disorders, but is also present in healthy individuals, affecting their psychological well- being and everyday life. A higher body mass index is associated...
| Autores: | , , , , , , , , |
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| Tipo de recurso: | artículo |
| Estado: | Versión aceptada para publicación |
| Fecha de publicación: | 2020 |
| País: | España |
| Institución: | Universidad de Barcelona |
| Repositorio: | Dipòsit Digital de la UB |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:diposit.ub.edu:2445/227885 |
| Acceso en línea: | https://hdl.handle.net/2445/227885 |
| Access Level: | acceso abierto |
| Palabra clave: | Pes corporal Imatge corporal en les dones Trastorns de la conducta alimentària Realitat virtual en la medicina Body weight Body image in women Eating disorders Virtual reality in medicine |
| Sumario: | Body image disturbance, consisting of an affective (body dissatisfaction) and perceptual (body distortion) component, is not only found in eating disorders, but is also present in healthy individuals, affecting their psychological well- being and everyday life. A higher body mass index is associated with higher body dissatisfaction, whereas results in relation to body distortion are mixed. Furthermore, body dissatisfaction is associated with a weight-related atten- tional bias. This study aimed to investigate the mediating role of a weight- related attentional bias in the relationship between body mass index and body image disturbance. Forty-one college women took part in a virtual reality and eye tracking procedure, in which the illusion of owning a virtual avatar with their body measurements was induced. During this procedure, body-related attentional bias was measured and afterwards body image disturbance was assessed. Mediation analysis revealed that weight-related attentional bias mediated the relationship between body mass index and body dissatisfaction (but not distortion). These findings suggest that modifying weight-related attentional bias would be a useful treatment target for improving body dissatis- faction. In addition, virtual reality technology could serve as an innovative method for modifying attentional bias in an ecologically valid way. |
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