Are attitudinal and perceptual body image the same or different? Evidence from high-level adaptation

Abstract

Highlights  Do measures of perceptual and attitudinal body image assess the same or different constructs?  The outcomes from a high-level body adaptation task for each case are hypothesized and tested.  Unambiguous support for independence between attitudinal and perceptual body image was found.  Novel suggestions how sufferers of anorexia nervosa come to overestimate their body size are offered.

Two components of body-image disturbance are differentially associated with distinct eating disorder characteristics in healthy young women

“…All participants were Japanese undergraduates or graduates of Tohoku University. It has been reported that some university students have eating-disorder characteristics and body-image disturbance [ 11 , 12 , 16 ]. Many similar previous studies recruited healthy young adult women, including university students.…”

“…No previous study has investigated the associations between the two components and eating-disorder characteristics; as the two relate conceptually to different mental activities, they may be differentially associated with different eating-disorder characteristics. The affective component is expected to be associated with body-image concerns [ 10 , 16 ]. Understanding differences in the associations between eating-disorder characteristics and the two body-image-disturbance components would provide insight into the psychological mechanisms underlying eating-disorder characteristics, the mechanisms underlying eating-disorder symptoms, and preventive and treatment strategies for eating disorders.…”

“…Overestimation of body size underlies the perceptual component, and perceived–actual discrepancy best correlates with the perceptual component. The affective component can be quantified in various ways, including via self-reported questionnaires about feelings toward body image [ 10 , 16 ], as well by the degree of discrepancy between the actual and ideal body size [ 18 ], and between the perceived and ideal body size [ 12 , 14 ]. Most recent studies measured the affective component based on the discrepancy between the perceived and ideal body (“perceived–ideal discrepancy”).…”

Waiting longer, feeling fatter: Effects of response delay on tactile distance estimation and confidence in females with anorexia nervosa

“…While many assume that overestimation stems from misperception of the body, an alternative interpretation is that overestimation stems from differences in cognitive and evaluative attitudes regarding body size (Smeets, 1997). This issue has plagued BID research since its emergence in the 1980s (Ben-Tovim et al, 1990), and the debates are still ongoing (Cornelissen et al, 2019;Mölbert et al, 2018;Wignall et al, 2017).…”

Body Size Judgments at 17 ms: Evidence From Perceptual and Attitudinal Body Image Indexes

“…However, the emergence of systematic research is tied to the use of depictive methods such as silhouettes scales (Stunkard et al, 1983) or self-report scales assessing an attitudinal dimension of body image (Menzel et al, 2011). By attitudinal dimension, literature in the field generally refers to feelings of satisfaction or dissatisfaction a person has about their body size and shape (Cornelissen et al, 2019). Even though these evaluation strategies specify patterns of experience toward its own body, little was known of perceptual body image until experimental methods were applied to the investigation (Martel et al, 2016).…”