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Social Pressures and Body Image as Contributors to Eating Habits among Collegiate Women Athletes

Mallin, Jill M.

Abstract Details

2007, Doctor of Philosophy, University of Akron, Counseling Psychology.
Researchers have often stated that when examining the development of eating disorders, it is fruitful to take a multi-dimensional approach in order to identify the role of several contributing factors. Unfortunately, not only has this framework been used all too rarely in the general research on eating disorders, it has hardly ever been used when looking at the development of disordered eating among athletes. To this end, relationships among self-reported symptoms of disordered eating, body image dissatisfaction, and two types of perceived pressure for thinness (social and athletic) were investigated in a sample of 206 women collegiate athletes from two Division I schools, representing 12 different sports. A series of regression analyses, and a test of mediation, were used to analyze the data. It was hypothesized that body image dissatisfaction and perceived pressure for thinness would each account for a significant amount of variance in symptoms of disordered eating, and that body image dissatisfaction would mediate the relationship between both kinds of perceived pressure for thinness and disordered eating. Support was garnered for several of the hypotheses. Specifically, the independent variables of body image dissatisfaction, social pressure for thinness, and athletic pressure for thinness each uniquely accounted for variance in disordered eating. Somewhat differing from the hypothesized relationship, body image dissatisfaction functioned as a partial mediator, rather than a full mediator, in the relationship between social pressure for thinness and disordered eating, as well as in the relationship between athletic pressure for thinness and disordered eating. Additional exploratory analyses indicated that athletic pressure did not account for additional variance in disordered eating above and beyond that accounted for by social pressure for thinness. Further, significant differences emerged on the variables of bulimia and athletic pressure for thinness when comparing individual sports and when comparing lean vs. nonlean sports. Therefore, all three variables (i.e., body image dissatisfaction, social pressure for thinness, and athletic pressure for thinness) were supported in the role they play in the development of disordered eating among women athletes. The finding of partial mediation of these relationships provides support for the continued examination and clarification of how these variables all uniquely contribute to this development.
Linda Subich (Advisor)
197 p.

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Mallin, J. M. (2007). Social Pressures and Body Image as Contributors to Eating Habits among Collegiate Women Athletes [Doctoral dissertation, University of Akron]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=akron1181163254

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Mallin, Jill. Social Pressures and Body Image as Contributors to Eating Habits among Collegiate Women Athletes. 2007. University of Akron, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=akron1181163254.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Mallin, Jill. "Social Pressures and Body Image as Contributors to Eating Habits among Collegiate Women Athletes." Doctoral dissertation, University of Akron, 2007. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=akron1181163254

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)