Bidirectional Relations Between Disordered Eating, Internalization of Beauty Ideals, and Self-Esteem: A Longitudinal Study With Adolescents
Abstract
Associations between disordered eating, internalization of beauty ideals, and self-esteem have been mainly studied in a unidirectional way. Therefore, this study explored the potential bidirectional associations between these three aspects, in a sample of 303 adolescents aged 12 to 15 (140 females and 163 males), in a 16-month longitudinal prospective study. Participants self-reported disordered eating, internalization of beauty ideals, and self-esteem. Autoregressive cross-lagged analyses showed bidirectional associations between self-esteem and disordered eating and unidirectional links between internalization of beauty ideals and disordered eating and lower self-esteem. All cross-lagged effects were equivalent across genders, except that the effect of internalization of beauty ideals at baseline on disordered eating 4 months later was higher for females. Temporal stability was moderate for all measures. These results contribute toward completing explanatory models of these problems and suggest that interventions based on the critique of esthetic ideals and on strengthening self-esteem should be implemented in early adolescence.
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Biographies
Paola Espinoza, PhD, is a researcher collaborator at the Department of Assessment and Intervention of Body Image at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Her main research is on risk factors of eating disorders and evaluation of the effectiveness of programs to prevent eating disturbances and body dissatisfaction.
Eva Penelo, PhD, is an associate professor of the unit of methodology at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (Spain). Her research interests include applied psychometrics, instrument validation, and structural equation modeling in health sciences.
Marisol Mora, PhD, is professor at the Departament de Psicologia Clínica i de la Salut, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Spain. She has developed research on eating disorders and body image. She has published in these areas in peer reviewed journals.
Rita Francisco, PhD, is an assistant professor of the School of Human Sciences at the Universidade Católica Portuguesa. Her research interests include eating disorders, well-being, and adjustment of adolescents in different social situations. She has clinical experience in the contexts of individual and family therapy with adolescents and adults.
Marcela L. González, PhD, is psychotherapist in Institut de Trastorns Alimentaris and a researcher collaborator at the Department of Assessment and Intervention of Body Image at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. Her main research is evaluation of the effectiveness of programs to prevent eating disturbances and body dissatisfaction.
Rosa M. Raich is professor of cognitive/behavioral psychology. She has developed research on eating disorders and body image during more than 30 years and is author of more than 200 scientific publications.
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Article first published online: November 25, 2018
Issue published: November 2019
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