Sociocultural models of disordered eating lack comprehensive explanations as to how thin ideal internalization leads to body dissatisfaction. This study examined two social psychological theories as explanations of this relation, namely social comparison and objectification theories, in a sample of 265 women attending a Southeastern university. Social comparison (both general and appearance-related) and body surveillance (the indicator of objectification) were tested as mediators of the relation between thin ideal internalization and body dissatisfaction using bootstrapping analyses. Results indicated that body surveillance was a significant specific mediator of this relation; however, neither operationalization of social comparison emerged as such. Results serve to elaborate upon the sociocultural model of disordered eating by providing a more comprehensive understanding of the processes by which thin ideal internalization manifests itself in body dissatisfaction. The current findings also highlight the importance of targeting body surveillance in clinical settings.
In university settings, the statistics regarding eating disorder prevalence are alarming, as between 4% and 9% or more of college women suffer from diagnosable eating disorders (Hesse-Biber et al., 1999, Keel et al., 2006 and Pyle et al., 1991). When disordered eating estimates for this group are broadened to include subthreshold levels, prevalence ranges from 34% to 67% of college women (e.g., Berg et al., 2009, Franko and Omori, 1999, Hoerr et al., 2002, Krahn et al., 2005, Mintz and Betz, 1988 and Mintz et al., 1997), indicating that disordered eating is relatively “normative” for this group. Furthermore, body dissatisfaction, which has been described as one of the “most consistent and robust risk and maintenance factors for eating pathology” (Stice, 2002, pp. 832–833) has been reported at rates as high as 80% for college women (Heatherton et al., 1995, Neighbors and Sobal, 2007, Silberstein et al., 1988, Spitzer et al., 1999 and Vohs et al., 2001).
