Abstract:
The gender differences in terms of self-body image dissatisfaction is widely documented: there is a strikingly high number of females more than males that report deviation from self-body image ideals and, on average, the degree of deviation from body image ideals is larger in females compared to males. In its extreme and chronic forms, the dissatisfaction with the self-body image can create the basis for developing mood, anxiety and/or eating disorders. Therefore, it is imperative to determine the factors that can create susceptibility for developing exaggerated and sustained body image dissatisfaction in females. From this starting point, this project is going to investigate the dynamic relationship between degree of perfectionism, and steroid hormones in shaping the body image ideals and sensitivity towards body-image related messages using surveys and behavioral tasks to assess conscious and unconscious cognitive appraisals about body image satisfaction. Since hormones are under an autonomic control, hormonal changes can be more powerful in shaping automatic cognitive processes than conscious and effortful cognitive states. Therefore, in order to tease this putative relationship between explicit and implicit cognitive processes and body-image related appraisals apart, we will implement a body-image version of the Stroop task. The aim of this project is to determine which combination physiological hormonal states and personality traits prime females towards a more negative or positive state of mind regarding body image-related appraisals in an effort to contribute to the understanding of the etiology of body image dissatisfaction related psychopathologies.