Drive for thinness and attention toward specific body parts in a nonclinical sample

Did you skip leg day? The neural mechanisms of muscle perception for body parts

While the neural mechanisms underpinning the perception of muscularity are poorly understood, recent progress has been made using the psychophysical technique of visual adaptation. Prolonged visual exposure to high (low) muscularity bodies causes subsequently viewed bodies to appear less (more) muscular, revealing a recalibration of the neural populations encoding muscularity. Here, we use visual adaptation to further elucidate the tuning properties of the neural processes underpinning muscle perception for the upper and lower halves of the body. Participants manipulated the apparent muscularity of upper and lower bodies until they appeared 'normal', prior to and following exposure to a series of top/bottom halves of bodies that were either high or low in muscularity. In Experiment 1, participants were adapted to isolated own-gender body halves from one of four conditions; increased (muscularity) upper (body half), increased lower, decreased upper, or decreased lower. Despite the presence of muscle aftereffects when the body halves the participants viewed and manipulated were congruent, there was only weak evidence of muscle aftereffect transfer between the upper and lower halves of the body. Aftereffects were significantly weaker when body halves were incongruent, implying minimal overlap in the neural mechanisms encoding muscularity for body half. Experiment 2 examined the generalisability of Experiment 1's findings in a more ecologically valid context using whole-body stimuli, producing a similar pattern of results as Experiment 1, but with no evidence of cross-adaptation. Taken together, the findings are most consistent with muscle-encoding neural populations that are body-half selective. As visual adaptation has been implicated in cases of body size and shape misperception, the present study furthers our current understanding of how these perceptual inaccuracies, particularly those involving muscularity, are developed, maintained, and may potentially be treated.

Attentional Biases Towards Body-Related Stimuli in Healthy Males: A Systematic Review

Recent literature has discussed the role of attentional biases towards body-related stimuli. Specific foci have been on those with high levels of body image concerns and female samples. Unfortunately, there has been limited focus on male samples within existing literature. The aim of the current study was to provide a critical synthesis of the findings of existing studies exploring attentional biases in adult males towards body-related stimuli. Critical synthesis of the findings of 20 studies explored four key methodologies: eye-tracking, dot-probe, visual search, and other methodologies (e.g. ARDPEI task). The current review provides evidence of specific attentional biases towards body-related stimuli in adult males experiencing body image concerns. Similar patterns of attentional biases are also demonstrated in males with body image pathologies. However, there appears to be distinct patterns of attentional biases for male and female participants. It is recommended that future research considers these findings and utilises measures developed specifically for male samples. Furthermore, additional variables require further attention, i.e. reasons for engaging in social comparison and/or engaging in physical activity.

Body image and self-perception in women with navel piercings

The present study investigated how women’s body image and body-perceptual processes are affected by navel piercings, an embellishment of the abdominal region women often feel negatively about. We probed perceptual (response times), cognitive (surveys), affective (aesthetic ratings) and neural (event-related potentials, ERPs) facets of (own) body perception. We found that navel piercings are primarily motivated by the desire to enhance one’s body image, and can significantly improve bodily self-perception relative to before and to imagined removal of the piercing. Hence, body image concerns in women with navel piercings were found to be comparable to those of a control group; and their aesthetic ratings of other women’s abdomens only differed, positively, for images depicting navel piercings. ERPs indicated that the sight of navel piercings enhances early structural encoding of bodies as well as late emotional-motivational processes, especially in women with navel piercings. We further found a strong self-advantage in both cortical and behavioural responses during recognition of own and others’ abdomens, especially for images displaying the piercing. Altogether, findings suggest that navel piercings become strongly, and beneficially, integrated into women’s bodily self image. Such piercings may thus be seen as expressions of body care that can protect against self-harming thoughts and behaviours.

I Look at my whole body and i feel better: attentional bias, emotional and psychophysiological response by pure exposure treatment in women with obesity

Obesity is one of the most important health problems nowadays. In addition to the direct physical consequences, it is also a risk factor in the development of psychological (Eating disorders, body dissatisfaction, depression, anxiety, etc.) and social problems. Among there, body dissatisfaction is key for development and maintenance of such problems.

OBJECTIVE

to deepen the effectiveness of the body exposure treatment, both in its pure form and guided modality in subjective, psychological and attentional levels in people with body dissatisfaction and obesity.

METHODS

Evaluations were carried out in a total of 16 women with obesity and body dissatisfaction at the beginning and end of 6 treatment sessions of pure exposure in front of the mirror. The changes experienced at the subjective level (questionnaires and subjective discomfort during the sessions) and psychophysiological (eye-tracking and heart rate) were analyzed.

RESULTS

Pure exposure treatment reduces negative thoughts and emotions towards the body itself, as well as the experienced discomfort towards the most conflictive parts. Selective attention to those parts of the body classified as uglier by the participants (especially the rear view of the body) show a decrease in physiological reactivity.

CONCLUSIONS

Pure exposure treatment seems to be effective in reducing subjective and psychological symptoms associated with body dissatisfaction in people with obesity, this technique could be considered a good choice for the treatment of body dissatisfaction. This step is essential to guarantee the long-term therapeutic success of any other treatment (nutritional or/and physical activity) in the future.

Faced with one's fear: Attentional bias in anorexia nervosa and healthy individuals upon confrontation with an obese body stimulus in an eye-tracking paradigm

OBJECTIVES

Cognitive biases, particularly attentional biases, have been shown to be central to anorexia nervosa (AN). This study looked at attention deployment when consecutively viewing an obese and own body stimulus that both might represent feared stimuli in AN.

METHODS

Individuals with AN (n = 26) and mentally healthy controls (MHCs; n = 16) viewed a picture of themselves and a standardized computer-generated obese body in random order for 4,000 ms each and then rated the attractiveness of the body parts of both stimuli. We compared dwell times on subjectively unattractive versus attractive body parts, and body parts that show weight status and gain most strongly (stomach, hips, thighs) versus least strongly.

RESULTS

For both stimuli, participants focused longer on the subjectively unattractive body parts (p < .01 and .001), with an even stronger attentional bias in individuals with AN regarding the obese stimulus (p < .05). Both groups also gazed longer at body parts indicative of weight status or gain (both stimuli p < .001), with no group differences.

CONCLUSIONS

The attentional bias to one's own subjectively unattractive body parts might represent a mechanism maintaining body image disturbance in women in general. This attentional bias is even stronger when women with AN are confronted with an obese stimulus, highlighting a potential mental preoccupation with being fat or weight gain and a behavior distinct for the disorder.

Rank-Order of Body Shapes Reveals Internal Hierarchy of Body Image

How do individuals rank body shapes? Does this relate to the body part one is most dissatisfied with? Our study investigates whether one can generalize regarding how women represent the body. Three BMI-calibrated images from the Photographic Figure Rating Scale, representative of thin (BMI = 14.72), medium (BMI = 20.33), and large (BMI = 29.26) shapes, were divided into torso, legs and arms, and saved as individual images on a black background. Of 27 possible composite images, 8 were chosen based on a Torso (thin vs. large) × Leg (thin/large vs. medium) × Arm (thin vs. large) design. Our 44 female participants ordered these from thinnest to largest. This was first according to torso, then leg, and finally arm: 41 individuals agreed on the thinnest image (thin torso, thin legs, thin arms), followed by a second image (thin torso, thin legs, large arms, n = 26; or thin torso, medium legs, thin arms, n = 10). One participant differed markedly in her choice of the first image (large torso, medium legs, thin arms). Interestingly, she scored 10 on the EDI-2 scale of Bulimic Tendencies, revealing high risk for bulimia, suggesting that our task might be useful for studying eating disorders. Our juxtaposition of two analytic procedures-partial order scalogram analysis (POSAC) and cluster analysis-enables one to uncover such outliers in a data set. Importantly, the 2D POSAC space clearly reveals the hierarchical structure of the body image.

Body-Related Attentional Bias among Men with High and Low Muscularity Dissatisfaction

Previous studies have found gender differences in body-related attentional bias (AB), with women showing AB towards weight-related body parts. However, few studies have assessed the relationship between body-related AB and muscularity dissatisfaction (MD) in men. This study aimed to assess the presence of muscle-related AB in men, using a combination of a virtual reality (VR) embodiment-based technique and eye-tracking (ET) technology. Twenty men with high MD and 20 with low MD, owned a virtual avatar that had the same silhouette and body mass index as the participant. To analyze the gaze data, muscle-related areas of interest (M-AOIs) and nonmuscle-related areas of interest (NM-AOIs) were defined. The complete fixation time and the number of fixations on each AOI were recorded. Mixed between (group)-within (AOI_condition) analyses of variance showed a statistically significant interaction between group and time (p < 0.05) in both AB measures. Follow-up analyses revealed an AB towards M-AOIs only in men with high MD. Overall, men with high MD spent more time looking and displayed a higher number of fixations on M-AOIs, specifically the chest and shoulders, compared to men with low MD. This study provides new information about the relationship between MD and body-related AB in men. Combining VR with ET technologies presents interesting opportunities in the study of body image in men.

Visual and cognitive processing of thin-ideal Instagram images containing idealized or disclaimer comments

Recent studies have demonstrated that exposure to thin-ideal social media content is associated with decreased body satisfaction, and disclaimer comments have been a proposed intervention. This experiment uses eye-tracking methods to explore the effect of disclaimer comments on participants' processing of thin-ideal Instagram images. Women ages 18-35 (N = 181) were randomly assigned to view thin-ideal Instagram images paired with one of two caption types: traditional comments that idealized the images, or disclaimer comments that critiqued the images as unrealistic. Participants' eye movements were tracked during viewing. Following exposure, participants reported their anxiety about specific body regions, as well as their perceptions of social pressure for thinness. Post-test body anxiety and perceived pressure for thinness did not differ based on experimental condition. Results indicated some differences in message processing, with similar visual attention to the model across conditions but greater attention to the comment in the disclaimer condition. Attention to the model's thighs was associated with increased body anxiety about the thighs in both conditions, whereas attention to the model's waist was associated with increased body anxiety about the waist only in the Idealized Comment condition. This indicates that the disclaimer comments were somewhat, but not entirely, effective.

The influence of gender and body dissatisfaction on body-related attentional bias: An eye-tracking and virtual reality study

OBJECTIVE

In the attentional bias (AB) phenomenon, eating disorder (ED) patients show a tendency to pay more attention to self-attributed unattractive body parts than to other body parts. However, little research has focused on gender differences in body-related attention, controlling for body dissatisfaction (BD). This study aimed to assess gender differences in AB toward specific weight- or nonweight-related body parts using a virtual reality (VR)-based embodiment technique and an eye-tracking AB assessment.

METHOD

Forty-five women (23 with high BD and 22 with low BD) and 40 men (20 with high BD and 20 with low BD) were subsequently embodied in three virtual avatars, the first based on the participant's actual measurements, the second being larger than the participant, and the third being the same as the first avatar. The number of fixations and complete fixation time on weight-related areas of interest (W-AOIs) and nonweight-related areas of interest (NW-AOIs) were recorded for the three assessment time/avatars.

RESULTS

The results showed a statistically significant interaction between gender and time for total fixation time and number of fixations (p < .05). BD levels did not significantly affect the results. Overall, women paid more attention to the W-AOIs than men, who in turn paid more attention to the NW-AOIs. Furthermore, preliminary evidence was found for an AB toward muscular-related AOIs among men.

CONCLUSIONS

This study provides new information about gender differences and BD in gaze pattern behaviors. Future psychological ED assessments and treatments could take advantage of the possibilities of VR while real-time AB is objectively measured.

Eye-tracking study on the effects of happiness and sadness on body dissatisfaction and selective visual attention during mirror exposure in bulimia nervosa

OBJECTIVE

Abundant research points to the central role of body image disturbances in the occurrence of eating disorders (ED). While emotional arousal has been identified as a trigger for binge eating in bulimia nervosa (BN), empirical knowledge on the influence of emotions on body image in individuals with BN is scarce. The present study sought to experimentally examine effects of a positive and negative emotion induction on body dissatisfaction and selective attention towards negatively valenced body parts among people with BN.

METHOD

In a randomized-controlled cross-over design, happiness and sadness were induced by film clips one-week apart in women with BN (n = 23) and non-ED controls (n = 26). After the emotion induction, participants looked at their body in a full-length mirror, while their attentional allocation was recorded with the help of a mobile eye tracker. Participants repeatedly rated their momentary body dissatisfaction.

RESULTS

Induction of happiness led to a significant decrease in self-reported body dissatisfaction. Furthermore, attentional bias (higher gaze duration and frequency) towards the most disliked body part relative to the most liked body part was significantly greater in the sadness than happiness condition in BN. No significant effects of emotion induction on gaze duration and gaze frequency during mirror exposure were found for controls.

DISCUSSION

In line with assumptions of current models on ED, findings support the notion that emotional state influences the body image of patients with BN.

Perceptual Not Attitudinal Factors Predict the Accuracy of Estimating Other Women's Bodies in Both Women With Anorexia Nervosa and Controls

Disturbance in how one's body shape and size is experienced, usually including over-estimation of one's own body size, is a core feature of the diagnostic criteria of anorexia nervosa (AN). Is this over-estimation specific to women with AN's judgments of their own body? Or is it just a general feature of their judgments about all bodies? If the latter, it would be consistent with a general error in the perception of body size potentially linked to the use of a different set of visual cues for judging body size. If the former, then this suggests that the over-estimation of own body size has a strong attitudinal component and may be part of the psycho-pathology of their condition. To test this hypothesis, 20 women with AN and 80 control observers estimated the body size of 46 women. The results show a strong effect of perceptual factors in estimating body size for both controls and women with AN. This result is consistent with size over-estimation of own body in AN having a strong attitudinal basis and being a core feature of the psycho-pathology of the condition.

Hormones Matter? Association of the Menstrual Cycle With Selective Attention for Liked and Disliked Body Parts

Body dissatisfaction is wide spread among women and is considered a risk factor for eating pathology. Therefore, it is clinically relevant to investigate potential influencing factors. While previous research has mainly revealed inconsistent findings for attentional processes in body perception, the present study aimed to investigate the association of menstrual cycle phase with body satisfaction and its perception. In a within subject design, 16 women with a natural menstrual cycle (NC) and 19 women who used hormonal contraception (HC) rated their bodily attractiveness and underwent a 3-minute mirror exposure while their eye movements were recorded at two different times during their cycle (NC: ovulation vs. late luteal phase; HC: mid vs. end of cycle). At ovulation, NC women felt more attractive and gazed less at unattractive body parts in contrast to the late luteal phase, where they felt less attractive and gazed more at unattractive body parts. There was no difference in the gaze pattern for the attractive body parts at ovulation and late luteal phase. Notably, HC women showed a balanced gazed pattern at attractive and unattractive body at both times. The menstrual cycle phase is associated with women's self-rated attractiveness and selective attention when looking at their own body. It should therefore be taken into account in clinical research addressing body image.

Where Do You Look? Visual Attention to Human Bodies across the Weight Spectrum in Individuals with Normal Weight or with Obesity

OBJECTIVE

We investigated how individuals with normal weight (NW) versus individuals with obesity (OB) visually explore human bodies varying in BMI.

METHODS

16 OB (BMI 37.5 ± 7.7 kg/m²) and 35 NW (BMI 21.5 ± 1.6 kg/m²) visually explored 35 natural photographs and 25 avatars depicting male and female bodies ranging from normal weight to obesity. Gaze behaviour was assessed using eye tracking technology. Additionally, participants rated the attractiveness of all body stimuli.

RESULTS

A comparison of the displayed gaze behaviour shown by both participant weight classes indicates that regarding visual stimuli of obese natural bodies, all participants (OB + NW) looked at the waist longer, whereas regarding visual stimuli of normal-weight bodies, all participants viewed the head longer. Overall, OB spent less time looking at the bodies than NW. All participants rated normal-weight bodies as more attractive than obese bodies. However, the NW sample rated the depicted obese bodies as even less attractive than the OB sample did.

CONCLUSIONS

The BMI of the explored body, but not the observer's BMI, produces differences in the visual exploration of human bodies. The displayed exploration pattern of obese bodies can cautiously be interpreted as a 'de-individualised' and 'obesity-focused' perception. This tendency may prove in close relationship with the negative cultural views on obesity.

Psychophysiological Changes during Pure vs Guided Mirror Exposure Therapies in Women with High Body Dissatisfaction: What Are They Learning about Their Bodies?

This study aimed to examine the psychophysiological changes resulting from two mirror exposure treatments that are effective at reducing body dissatisfaction. Thirty-five university women with body dissatisfaction and subclinical eating disorders were randomly assigned to one of two groups: pure (n = 17) or guided exposure (n = 18). The participants received six sessions of treatment. Their thoughts, feelings and avoidance behaviours were assessed after each session. Their subjective discomfort, heart rate and skin conductance were assessed within the sessions. Both groups showed improvement in cognitive-affective and avoidance behaviour symptoms. Nevertheless, the pure exposure group showed faster habituation of subjective discomfort and a greater physiological response than the guided exposure group. These findings suggest that both procedures are effective interventions for improving body image disturbances, although psychophysiological changes observed within session suggest that each technique would act through different processes. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and Eating Disorders Association.

Effects of the exposure to self- and other-referential bodies on state body image and negative affect in resistance-trained men

Previous body image research suggests that first, exposure to body stimuli can negatively affect men's body satisfaction and second, body concerns are associated with dysfunctional gaze behavior. To date, however, the effects of self- vs. other-referential body stimuli and of gaze behavior on body image in men under exposure conditions have not been investigated. Therefore, 49 weight-trained men were presented with pictures of their own and other bodies of different builds (i.e., normal, muscular, hyper-muscular) while being eye-tracked. Participants completed pre- and post-exposure measures of body image and affect. Results indicated that one's own and the muscular body negatively affected men's body image to a comparable degree. Exposure to one's own body also led to increased negative affect. Increased attention toward disliked own body parts was associated with a more negative post-exposure body image and affect. These results suggest a crucial role of critical self-examination in maintaining body dissatisfaction.

Appearance evaluation of others' faces and bodies in anorexia nervosa and body dysmorphic disorder

OBJECTIVE

Individuals with anorexia nervosa (AN) and body dysmorphic disorder (BDD) exhibit distorted perception and negative evaluations of their own appearance; however, little is known about how they perceive others' appearance, and whether or not the conditions share perceptual distortions.

METHOD

Thirty participants with BDD, 22 with AN, now weight-restored, and 39 healthy comparison participants (HC) rated photographs of others' faces and bodies on attractiveness, how overweight or underweight they were, and how much photographs triggered thoughts of their own appearance. We compared responses among groups by stimulus type and by level-of-detail (spatial frequency).

RESULTS

Compared to HCs, AN and BDD had lower attractiveness ratings for others' bodies and faces for high-detail and low-detail images, rated bodies as more overweight, and were more triggered to think of their own appearance for faces and bodies. In AN, symptom severity was associated with greater triggering of thoughts of own appearance and higher endorsement of overweight ratings for bodies. In BDD, symptom severity was associated with greater triggering of thoughts of own appearance for bodies and higher overweight ratings for low-detail images. BDD was more triggered to think of own facial appearance than AN.

DISCUSSION

AN and BDD show similar behavioral phenotypes of negative appearance evaluations for others' faces and bodies, and have thoughts of their own appearance triggered even for images outside of their primary appearance concerns, suggesting a more complex cross-disorder body-image phenotype than previously assumed. Future treatment strategies may benefit from addressing how these individuals evaluate others in addition to themselves. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.(Int J Eat Disord 2017; 50:127-138).

Visual selective attention in body dysmorphic disorder, bulimia nervosa and healthy controls

OBJECTIVE

Cognitive behavioral models postulate that selective attention plays an important role in the maintenance of body dysmorphic disorder (BDD). It is suggested that individuals with BDD overfocus on perceived defects in their appearance, which may contribute to the excessive preoccupation with their appearance.

METHODS

The present study used eye tracking to examine visual selective attention in individuals with BDD (n=19), as compared to individuals with bulimia nervosa (BN) (n=21) and healthy controls (HCs) (n=21). Participants completed interviews, questionnaires, rating scales and an eye tracking task: Eye movements were recorded while participants viewed photographs of their own face and attractive as well as unattractive other faces.

RESULTS

Eye tracking data showed that BDD and BN participants focused less on their self-rated most attractive facial part than HCs. Scanning patterns in own and other faces showed that BDD and BN participants paid as much attention to attractive as to unattractive features in their own face, whereas they focused more on attractive features in attractive other faces. HCs paid more attention to attractive features in their own face and did the same in attractive other faces.

CONCLUSION

Results indicate an attentional bias in BDD and BN participants manifesting itself in a neglect of positive features compared to HCs. Perceptual retraining may be an important aspect to focus on in therapy in order to overcome the neglect of positive facial aspects. Future research should aim to disentangle attentional processes in BDD by examining the time course of attentional processing.

Does habituation really happen? Investigation of psycho-biological responses to body exposure in bulimia nervosa

BACKGROUND

Body exposure is a common and effective treatment for body image disturbance in bulimia nervosa (BN). However, little is known about treatment mechanisms. Based on models of emotional processing and neurovisceral integration, we expected to observe a) initial activation and b) habituation of cognitive-affective and autonomic responding within one and between two standardized body exposure sessions.

METHODS

A group of 13 women with BN and 13 healthy controls (HC) were repeatedly exposed to their bodies. Prior to and after treatment with three individualized mirror exposure sessions participants received a session of standardized exposure to videographic recordings of their body. Subjective ratings of body-related emotions and thoughts were assessed repeatedly throughout the standardized exposure sessions and autonomic responses were recorded continuously.

RESULTS

Subjective and sympathetic responses were activated initially in both groups. Cognitive-affective responses habituated within the standardized sessions in both groups, whereas between the standardized sessions habituation was only found in women with BN. Increasing sympathetic responses were found within the sessions in both groups.

CONCLUSIONS

The results support cognitive-affective habituation during body exposure in BN and to a lesser extent in HC. Autonomic responses however did not show a corresponding pattern and did not distinguish between groups. Implications for body exposure research and practice are discussed.

Media influence on drive for thinness, body satisfaction, and eating attitudes among young women in Hong Kong and China

The present study examined the impact of thin-ideal media exposure on Chinese women's drive for thinness, attitudes towards body shape, and eating attitude. Women were assigned to one of two video conditions, which portrayed the thin-ideal (experimental) or was neutral (control group), in terms of content. A total of 83 young women from Hong Kong (N = 38) and Shanghai (N = 45), aged between 18 and 25 years (M_age = 22.7) participated in the study. A significant interaction was observed between the experimental video condition and location. Hong Kong women in the experimental group experienced greater levels of body dissatisfaction than Shanghai women exposed to the same condition. Exposure to thin-ideal media produced an increase in drive for thinness, body dissatisfaction and problematic eating attitudes regardless of location, with a greater immediate impact shown in Hong Kong women.

The influence of variations in eating disorder-related symptoms on processing of emotional faces in a non-clinical female sample: An eye-tracking study

This study aimed to: (i) determine if the attention bias towards angry faces reported in eating disorders generalises to a non-clinical sample varying in eating disorder-related symptoms; (ii) examine if the bias occurs during initial orientation or later strategic processing; and (iii) confirm previous findings of impaired facial emotion recognition in non-clinical disordered eating. Fifty-two females viewed a series of face-pairs (happy or angry paired with neutral) whilst their attentional deployment was continuously monitored using an eye-tracker. They subsequently identified the emotion portrayed in a separate series of faces. The highest (n=18) and lowest scorers (n=17) on the Eating Disorders Inventory (EDI) were compared on the attention and facial emotion recognition tasks. Those with relatively high scores exhibited impaired facial emotion recognition, confirming previous findings in similar non-clinical samples. They also displayed biased attention away from emotional faces during later strategic processing, which is consistent with previously observed impairments in clinical samples. These differences were related to drive-for-thinness. Although we found no evidence of a bias towards angry faces, it is plausible that the observed impairments in emotion recognition and avoidance of emotional faces could disrupt social functioning and act as a risk factor for the development of eating disorders.

Fixation patterns, not clinical diagnosis, predict body size over-estimation in eating disordered women and healthy controls

OBJECTIVE

A core feature of anorexia nervosa (AN) is an over-estimation of body size. Women with AN have a different pattern of eye-movements when judging bodies, but it is unclear whether this is specific to their diagnosis or whether it is found in anyone over-estimating body size.

METHOD

To address this question, we compared the eye movement patterns from three participant groups while they carried out a body size estimation task: (i) 20 women with recovering/recovered anorexia (rAN) who had concerns about body shape and weight and who over-estimated body size, (ii) 20 healthy controls who had normative levels of concern about body shape and who estimated body size accurately (iii) 20 healthy controls who had normative levels of concern about body shape but who did over-estimate body size.

RESULTS

Comparisons between the three groups showed that: (i) accurate body size estimators tended to look more in the waist region, and this was independent of clinical diagnosis; (ii) there is a pattern of looking at images of bodies, particularly viewing the upper parts of the torso and face, which is specific to participants with rAN but which is independent of accuracy in body size estimation.

DISCUSSION

Since the over-estimating controls did not share the same body image concerns that women with rAN report, their over-estimation cannot be explained by attitudinal concerns about body shape and weight. These results suggest that a distributed fixation pattern is associated with over-estimation of body size and should be addressed in treatment programs. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. (Int J Eat Disord 2016; 49:507-518).

Selective Visual Attention during Mirror Exposure in Anorexia and Bulimia Nervosa

Objective

Cognitive theories suggest that body dissatisfaction results from the activation of maladaptive appearance schemata, which guide mental processes such as selective attention to shape and weight-related information. In line with this, the present study hypothesized that patients with anorexia nervosa (AN) and bulimia nervosa (BN) are characterized by increased visual attention for the most dissatisfying/ugly body part compared to their most satisfying/beautiful body part, while a more balanced viewing pattern was expected for controls without eating disorders (CG).

Method

Eye movements were recorded in a group of patients with AN (n = 16), BN (n = 16) and a CG (n = 16) in an ecologically valid setting, i.e., during a 3-min mirror exposure.

Results

Evidence was found that patients with AN and BN display longer and more frequent gazes towards the most dissatisfying relative to the most satisfying and towards their most ugly compared to their most beautiful body parts, whereas the CG showed a more balanced gaze pattern.

Discussion

The results converge with theoretical models that emphasize the role of information processing in the maintenance of body dissatisfaction. Given the etiological importance of body dissatisfaction in the development of eating disorders, future studies should focus on the modification of the reported patterns.

Analysis of Attentional Bias towards Attractive and Unattractive Body Regions among Overweight Males and Females: An Eye-Movement Study

Background

Body image distortion is highly prevalent among overweight individuals. Whilst there is evidence that body-dissatisfied women and those suffering from disordered eating show a negative attentional bias towards their own unattractive body parts and others’ attractive body parts, little is known about visual attention patterns in the area of obesity and with respect to males. Since eating disorders and obesity share common features in terms of distorted body image and body dissatisfaction, the aim of this study was to examine whether overweight men and women show a similar attentional bias.

Methods/Design

We analyzed eye movements in 30 overweight individuals (18 females) and 28 normal-weight individuals (16 females) with respect to the participants’ own pictures as well as gender- and BMI-matched control pictures (front and back view). Additionally, we assessed body image and disordered eating using validated questionnaires.

Discussion

The overweight sample rated their own body as less attractive and showed a more disturbed body image. Contrary to our assumptions, they focused significantly longer on attractive compared to unattractive regions of both their own and the control body. For one’s own body, this was more pronounced for women. A higher weight status and more frequent body checking predicted attentional bias towards attractive body parts. We found that overweight adults exhibit an unexpected and stable pattern of selective attention, with a distinctive focus on their own attractive body regions despite higher levels of body dissatisfaction. This positive attentional bias may either be an indicator of a more pronounced pattern of attentional avoidance or a self-enhancing strategy. Further research is warranted to clarify these results.

Future directions for positive body image research

The emergence of positive body image research during the last 10 years represents an important shift in the body image literature. The existing evidence provides a strong empirical basis for the study of positive body image and research has begun to address issues of age, gender, ethnicity, culture, development, and intervention in relation to positive body image. This article briefly reviews the existing evidence before outlining directions for future research. Specifically, six areas for future positive body image research are outlined: (a) conceptualization, (b) models, (c) developmental factors, (d) social interactions, (e) cognitive processing style, and (f) interventions. Finally, the potential role of positive body image as a protective factor within the broader body image literature is discussed.

Feeling bad posing as a model: an objective manner of study upward own-body comparisons in body-dissatisfied women

Emotional effects of upward body comparisons are suggested to occur automatically. A startle reflex paradigm was used to objectively examine the emotions elicited by viewing a picture of one's own body adopting a model pose or a neutral pose, in 30 women with high body dissatisfaction (HBD) and 33 women with low body dissatisfaction (LBD). In-task emotional responses in perceived valence, arousal and control were assessed. Additionally, post-task positive/negative and body-related beauty feelings were recorded. The results revealed that HBD women, compared with LBD women, showed (i) less pleasure, higher activation and less control whilst viewing their own bodies and (ii) less pleasure, more negative/ugliness feelings and an increased startle response when viewing themselves posing as models. The data showed that their own bodies provoked an immediate negative emotional state in HBD women. However, greater aversive psychophysiological mechanisms were automatically activated only when these women posed as models, suggesting that they made upward own-body comparisons.

Identifying attentional bias and emotional response after appearance-related stimuli exposure

The effect of media images has been regarded as a significant variable in the construction or in the activation of body images. Individuals who have a negative body image use avoidance coping strategies to minimize damage to their body image. We identified attentional biases and negative emotional responses following exposure to body stimuli. Female university students were divided into two groups based on their use of avoidance coping strategies (high-level group: high avoidance [HA]; low-group: low avoidance [LA]), and were assigned to two different conditions (exposure to thin body pictures, ET, and exposure to oversized body pictures, EO). Results showed that the HA group paid more attention to slim bodies and reported more negative emotions than the LA group, and that the EO had more negative effects than the ET. We suggest that HAs may attend more to slim bodies as a way of avoiding overweight bodies, influenced by social pressure, and in the search for a compensation of a positive emotional balance. However, attentional bias toward slim bodies can cause an upward comparison process, leading to increased body dissatisfaction, which is the main factor in the development of eating disorders (EDs). Therefore, altering avoidance coping strategies should be considered for people at risk of EDs.

"Looks do matter"--visual attentional biases in adolescent girls with eating disorders viewing body images

Visual attention allocation of adolescent girls with and without an eating disorder while viewing body images of underweight, normal-weight and overweight women was studied using eye tracking. While all girls attended more to specific body parts (e.g. hips, upper legs), eating-disordered girls showed an attentional bias towards unclothed body parts.

Differences in eye-movement patterns between anorexic and control observers when judging body size and attractiveness

Attentional biases may influence the eye-movements made when judging bodies and so alter the visual information sampled when making a judgment. This may lead to an overestimation of body size. We measured the eye-movements made by 16 anorexic observers and 16 age-matched controls when judging body size and attractiveness. We combined behavioural data with a novel eye-movement analysis technique that allowed us to apply spatial statistical techniques to make fine spatial discriminations in the pattern of eye-movements between our observer groups. Our behavioural results show that anorexic observers overestimate body size relative to controls and find bodies with lower body mass indexes more attractive. For both judgments, the controls' fixations centre on the stomach, but the anorexic observers show a much wider fixation pattern extending to encompass additional features such as the prominence of the hip and collar bones. This additional visual information may serve to alter their behavioural judgments towards an overestimation of body size and shift their ideal body size towards a significantly lower value.

Attentional and interpretative biases in appearance concern: An investigation of biases in appearance-related information processing

The present study examined associations between high levels of appearance concern and information processing biases in interpretation and attention. An opportunity sample (N=79) categorised ambiguous stimuli as related or unrelated to appearance. Participants then responded to the same stimuli in a modified visual dot-probe task assessing attentional bias. Participant responses were assessed in relation to level of appearance concern. The results indicated a valence specific bias towards interpretation of ambiguous stimuli as negative and appearance-related in individuals with higher levels of concern. There was also evidence of attentional bias towards information perceived as appearance-related in participants with higher levels of appearance concern. The study findings suggest that association between appearance-orientated information processing biases and level of appearance concern; this association may lead to mutually reinforcing bias and concern.

Neural correlates of viewing photographs of one's own body and another woman's body in anorexia and bulimia nervosa: an fMRI study

BACKGROUND

In spite of many similarities in the psychopathology of anorexia nervosa (AN) and bulimia nervosa (BN), the 2 groups seem to differ in terms of body image disturbances. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to compare neuronal correlates of viewing photographs of one's own body and another woman's body in patients with these forms of eating disorders as well as controls.

METHODS

We performed functional magnetic resonance imaging while women with AN (n = 13), BN (n = 15) and healthy controls (n = 27) viewed 16 standardized pictures of their own body and another woman's body, taken while the participants were wearing a bikini.

RESULTS

When viewing their own body, participants with AN and BN showed reduced activity in the inferior parietal lobule compared with healthy women. In response to looking at another woman's body, participants with AN had higher amygdala activity than did those in the BN and control groups.

LIMITATIONS

The generalizability of the results is limited by the small sample size.

CONCLUSION

Our data suggest decreased attentional processes in AN and BN toward one's own body, possibly reflecting body-related avoidance behaviour. Enhanced limbic activity elicited by looking at another woman's body in participants with AN might be a neural correlate of stronger emotional activation and enhanced vigilance, possibly resulting from social comparison processes. Our study reveals hints about body image-associated alterations in brain activity, which seem to be more pronounced among women with AN than among those with BN.