Examining the Dissociative Basis for Body Image Disturbances

Abstract

Although dissociative symptoms have been linked with both food- and appearance-related aspects of eatingdisorders, the psychological mechanisms underlying these relationships remain unclear. The present studyevaluated the hypothesis that the disturbances of self-identity attributed to dissociation can manifest asdisturbances of body image and, in turn, undermine body-specific self-evaluations relevant to disordered eating(i.e., body comparison, body dissatisfaction, and internalization of the thin ideal). Ninety-three female universitystudents completed self-report measures of dissociation and body-related aspects of disordered eating. Inaddition, the method of constant stimuli was used to experimentally derive three measures of body imagedisturbance: (1) accuracy of body size estimations (body image distortion), (2) ability to discriminate betweendifferent body sizes (body image sensitivity), and (3) consistency in one’s body size estimations (body imagevariability). The findings show that dissociation is related to symptoms of disordered eating, and that theserelationships may be mediated by body image instability. Collectively, these findings support the notion that thebody image attitudes and behaviours that characterize eating disorders may derive from proprioceptive deficitsdue to dissociation.