Expand Your Horizon: A programme that improves body image and reduces self-objectification by training women to focus on body functionality.
This study tested Expand Your Horizon, a programme designed to improve body image by training women to focus on the functionality of their body using structured writing assignments. Eighty-one women (Mage=22.77) with a negative body image were randomised to the Expand Your Horizon programme or to an active control programme. Appearance satisfaction, functionality satisfaction, body appreciation, and self-objectification were measured at pretest, posttest, and one-week follow-up. Following the intervention, participants in the Expand Your Horizon programme experienced greater appearance satisfaction, functionality satisfaction, and body appreciation, and lower levels of self-objectification, compared to participants in the control programme. Partial eta-squared effect sizes were of small to medium magnitude. This study is the first to show that focusing on body functionality can improve body image and reduce self-objectification in women with a negative body image. These findings provide support for addressing body functionality in programmes designed to improve body image.
Department of Clinical Psychological Science, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands. Electronic address: Jessica.Alleva@maastrichtuniversity.nl.
Jessica M
JM
Alleva
Department of Clinical Psychological Science, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Carolien
C
Martijn
Department of Methodology and Statistics, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Gerard J P
GJ
Van Breukelen
Department of Clinical Psychological Science, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands.
Anita
A
Jansen
Department of Health Psychology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
Kai
K
Karos
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001828:Body Image / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D015397:Program Evaluation; D012649:Self Concept; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult
Body appreciation; Body functionality; Body image; Intervention; Programme; Self-objectification