An Investigation on the Relationship Between Social Appearance Concerns and Body Perceptions of Weightlifting Athletes at National Team Level

Abstract

This study examined the relationship between social appearance anxiety and body perception of national team weightlifting athletes (n=104; 58 males, 46 females) who had extensive weight training experience. The data were analyzed using SPSS 22, including descriptive and inferential statistics such as the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, Independent T test, and Pearson correlation. The Social Appearance Anxiety Scale and Body Perception Scale were used to measure individuals' social appearance anxiety and body perception, respectively. The results indicated that there were no significant differences in body perception and social appearance anxiety scores based on gender, educational or marital status (p>0.05). However, a highly significant negative correlation was found between body perception and social appearance anxiety (p=0.0001). Additionally, there were no significant differences in body perception and social appearance anxiety scores according to age groups (p>0.05). Overall, the study revealed that weightlifters had a good body perception and low social appearance anxiety. Furthermore, as body perception levels increased, social appearance anxiety decreased.