scholarly journals The concept of a positive body image in modern foreign psychology

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 55-69
Author(s):  
T.A. Meshkova

Research into the problem of body image has more than a century of history, most of which is associated with the study of negative attitudes towards the body and related psychopathology - eating disorders, body dysmorphic disorders, etc. In the last decade there has been a growing tendency in this area to shift the emphasis to the study of a positive body image, just as in psychology in general there are more and more works performed in the paradigm of positive psychology, which calls for abandoning the concept of disease and searching for new approaches based on the positive potential of the individual. This review presents the main stages in the study of the problem of body image in foreign psychology, the origin and development of ideas about a positive body image as a special construct that is not the opposite pole in the general “negative-positive” continuum, the key works of leading researchers who have formed the concept of a positive body image as an independent entity, the main components of a positive body image, methodological tools used to assess a positive body image, and the results of studies of a positive body image in various social groups. The modern perspectives of research in the field of body image are presented in accordance with the views of leading foreign experts.

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Débora Godoy-Izquierdo ◽  
Isabel Díaz

In a social and sports world dominated by weight-centred beliefs and highly exigent and gendered athletic and beauty body standards, the vulnerability for eating pathology, i.e., disordered eating and eating disorders (EDs), is elevated among women athletes. The aim of this study was to explore body image facets and ED risk among female athletes in masculinised sports such as soccer. Forty-five federated amateur female soccer players from Spain participated in this study, voluntarily complying with an extensive evaluation protocol on attitudes towards body and appearance and eating practises. The participants overall reported self-representations of their bodies that corresponded to their reality as athletes, but their body ideals were also more demanding in terms of low fat and muscularity, in association with the functionality of their body and the physical demands of their athletic activity. Despite having a fairly high positive body image and body satisfaction, they also expressed negative attitudes towards their bodies. Around 2 out of 10 players were at risk of suffering from an ED. Players with negative attitudes towards their bodies had an odd 12 times likely to develop an ED compared to those with lower self-devaluation, after adjusting for BMI and body perceptions (OR = 12.3, p < 0.01). On the contrary, players who appreciate their bodies and hold a positive body image had an odd 83% lower to suffer from eating pathology, after adjusting for BMI and body satisfaction (OR = 0.17, p < 0.05). Our findings support the healthy and protective role of positive body image in sports contexts. Body attitudes should be addressed in preventive and therapeutic efforts for reducing the prevalence of EDs in women's sports, within both a “negative” and a “positive” paradigm of body image.


2016 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 77-85
Author(s):  
Наталия Авдюнина ◽  
Nataliya Avdyunina

The article is devoted to the study of the formation of body image in adolescence, relations to other components. Body image is a concept, which includes perceptions of one’s own body, sensual painting of this perception and how, in his opinion, along with its surrounding; it is a kind of system of human representations about the physical side of the self, about my body. The main component of body image is knowledge of the individual about himself, of his physical component. Body image is an important component of self-consciousness. In personality develop- ment is the crisis period of early adolescence because in this phase is the destruction of old and formation of new image of the body that influences personality, his attitude. A negative attitude towards your body can lead to mental disorders, increased levels of anxiety and inappropriate behavior. Therefore, in this study, we considered this age stage of the individual. The article presents the structure of body image, its main components, based upon the results of the study. The author suggests that the development of body image in adolescence becomes successful in the implementation of components of body image that includes a foreign body, boundaries, body image and sex- role identity. We also think that positive body image is associated with such personality traits as self-confidence, sociability, responsibility, independence and depends on how people are satisfied with their appearance.


2020 ◽  
pp. 1-8
Author(s):  
Claudia G. Levenig ◽  
Michael Kellmann ◽  
Jens Kleinert ◽  
Johanna Belz ◽  
Tobias Hesselmann ◽  
...  

Context: Low back pain (LBP) is a serious health problem, both in the general population as well as in athletes. Research has shown that psychosocial aspects, such as dysfunctional pain responses, play a significant role in the chronification of LBP. Recent research supports the relevance of the multidisciplinary concept of body image in the interpretation of LBP. Objective: To examine the differences in 2 psychosocial aspects, body image and pain responses, between athletes and nonathletes with LBP. Design: Cross-sectional design. Setting: The questionnaires were distributed in the course of LBP treatment. Participants: Data from 163 athletes (mean age = 28.69 [9.6] y) and 75 nonathletes (mean age = 39.34 [12.63] y) were collected. Interventions: Data were collected by questionnaires assessing body image, pain behavior, training activity, and LBP. Main Outcome Measures: To examine group differences between athletes and nonathletes regarding body image and pain behavior, the authors performed 2-way analyses of variance with Bonferroni post hoc tests. Results: The results showed (1) a significant main effect regarding pain responses and body image, showing that participants with eustress endurance or adaptive pain behavior revealed a more positive body image in both groups compared with participants with distress endurance or fear-avoidance behavior, and (2) a significant main effect for the factor group in the body image dimension of physical efficacy, indicating a more positive body image for athletes. Conclusion: These results suggest that considering multiple risk factors for LBP, such as body image and dysfunctional pain behavior, as well as subgrouping, might be valuable for research and for broadening therapy options.


1954 ◽  
Vol 100 (421) ◽  
pp. 961-964 ◽  
Author(s):  
John B. Stanton

Certain specific disabilities following lesions of the dominant hemisphere particularly those involving the parietal region, have been recognized for many years. The syndrome of dyscalculia, dysgraphia, right-left disorientation and finger agnosia is usually known as Gerstmann's syndrome, following that author's descriptions in 1924 and 1940. It has been suggested that of these four main components of the syndrome, finger agnosia might be the fundamental disturbance, bringing the others in its train. Thus, as a result of the postulated importance of the digits for numeration, acalculia would naturally follow. Dysgraphia would result from the loss of the “schema” for the fingers—a part of the body-image—and right-left disorientation might be a consequence of the same body-image disturbance—a “hand” agnosia.


2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 146-161 ◽  
Author(s):  
K Alysse Bailey ◽  
Kimberley L Gammage ◽  
Cathy van Ingen

This article highlights the use and importance of action research in creating a new positive body image program. The purpose of the larger action research project was to design, test, and implement a positive body image program by working with a core group of diverse stakeholders from an exercise facility. Stakeholders included older adults (aged 55+), people with physical disabilities, and those with cardiovascular disease or risk factors, populations rarely included in the body image literature, particularly in program design. The resulting program was built to teach members of the facility about body image (e.g. its definition, causes, and influences), positive body image, and how to manage their own body image experiences and be critical of the Western beauty ideal. The project is outlined with emphasis on the development of the program along with the researcher’s reflexive notes and participant feedback. We also highlight the strengths and challenges of using action research in the development of a positive body image program with suggestions to improve this process for future action researchers. This research highlights the importance of using action research in order to engage participants who are not typically involved in the knowledge production process of body image program development.


2011 ◽  
Vol 26 (S2) ◽  
pp. 273-273
Author(s):  
A. Cocca ◽  
J. Viciana

IntroductionA suitable body pattern is necessary for health. A wrong development of it could determine disorders in mental and physical areas (Ballesteros, 1982). To be active since childhood constitutes a primary factor for developing a good Body Mass Index (BMI) and body image, the main components of body pattern (Piéron, 2005).ObjectivesTo evaluate levels of physical activity (PA) and the relation with body pattern for the prevention of disorders in spanish youth.Methods3685 subjects aged 8 to 24 were selected from various educational institutions of Granada, Spain. Researchers took antropomethric measurements and submitted pupils to IPAQ questionnaire (Booth, 2000) and Body Image Assessment Scale (Thompson & Grey, 1995).ResultsResults showed that PA levels constantly decrease from Primary School until University (p = .001), and BMI increased at the same time. Body image kept constant values at each age range. We found significative correlations between PA and BMI and between BMI and body image (p = .001), but not between PA and body image.ConclusionsThis lack of correlation could mean that subjects have a wrong perception of their body, since they consider themselves healthy despite their BMI raise. This could explain the reduction of practice. This situation could determine the progressive onset of sedentary behaviors and mental disorders as anorexia or bulimia. In the future, Physical Education teachers should aim their classes at developing the perception of body through PA, to make pupils be active and to give them the basis for a suitable construction of body pattern.


1974 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 461-472 ◽  
Author(s):  
Franklin C. Shontz

The body image is not a body organ, a psychological picture, or a little-person-in-the-head. It is best described in terms of the functions it serves and the levels at which it is experienced. The body functions as a sensory register, an instrument for action, a source of drives, a stimulus to the self and others, a private world, and an expressive instrument. The four levels of body experience are schemata, self, fantasy, and concept. A complete description of a body image disorder identifies the source of the disorder and its effects on the functions and levels of experience. Behavioral treatment for body image disorder may develop basic sensory-motor capacities, teach specific skills, promote interpersonal relations with others having similar problems, or use traditional psychotherapeutic techniques, depending upon the needs of the individual patient.


2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 375-383
Author(s):  
Ksenia N. Belogai

The present paper deals with the body image formed in women during the period of middle adulthood, or midlife. The research featured Russian-speaking women, who demonstrated a global trend in that they expressed mainly negative ideas about their body and a standard dissatisfaction with their appearance. The women were concerned with their body weight, shape, and functional characteristics. In middle adulthood, body image is determined, to a large extent, by the exclusively female bodily experience, i.e. menstruation, pregnancy, childbirth, and breastfeeding. For instance, women with a positive attitude towards their own body were less likely to have abortions or miscarriages, complications during pregnancy and childbirth. In addition, they expressed more pronounced positive feelings associated with the movement of the fetus in the womb. In general, positive body image was found to form in those pregnant women who moved on from evaluating their appearance to evaluating the functionality of their body. The data also showed that the body image in women aged 25–40 depended on the body mass index: women with a lower body mass index had a more positive body image.


2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Olena Siliytina ◽  

The article contains a personality’s corporeality intelligence phenomenon specifics theoretical analysis statement. The article presents the personality’s corporeality intelligence shaping factors - self-assessment, gender roles of the individual and his sexuality, regulatory, cognitive and emotional structures of the personality, assessment of their appearance and body image, health and subjective assessment – theoretical analysis results. The procedure and methodical bases of personality’s corporeality intelligence formation factors studying are described. The specifics of self- assessment, self-regulation, attitude to health and the severity of its emotional and social components empirical study results are presented. The results of empirical data set factor analysis were analyzed, which made it possible to identify individual’s body intelligence manifestation trends. It is established that the body image acts as a system-repeating factor in the self-identity system formation; corporeality intelligence acts as a combination of perception of the body, sexuality and actual state of health; loss of interest in oneself and one's body is a consequence of guilt or the need for self-restraint; emotional response to the sphere of the body depends on the success of human self-regulation; competence and self-regulation as components of corporeality intelligence form an inseparable unity; sexuality as an aspect of the individual’s corporeality intelligence is socially conditioned and depends on the system of personal relationships; independence and self-sufficiency are important factors in the social health of the individual, etc.


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