Abstract
Abstract
Background
Body-related attentional biases are assumed to contribute to the development and maintenance of body-related concerns or specific mental disorders such as eating disorders. However, while studies have indicated gender-specific differences in body-related concerns, less is known about gender-specific differences in body-related attention allocation.
Methods
An eye-tracking paradigm was used to assess women’s (n = 41) and men’s (n = 42) attention patterns towards their own and a peer’s body. Additionally, state body satisfaction and affect were examined.
Results
While both women and men showed higher state positive and negative affect after viewing one’s own body than after viewing a peer’s body, only women displayed worse state body satisfaction after viewing one’s own body than after viewing a peer’s body. Conversely, both genders showed a similar deficit-oriented attention pattern, irrespective of the presented body type.
Conclusions
The findings provide evidence of gender-specific differences in state body satisfaction after viewing one’s own and a peer’s body. However, these differences do not seem to be reflected by gender differences in body-related attention allocation. As both women and men showed a deficit-oriented attentional bias, they might benefit from interventions which aim to establish a functional or self-serving way of looking at one’s own body.
Funder
Swiss Anorexia Nervosa Foundation
Stiftung Mercator
Universität Osnabrück
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Subject
Clinical Psychology,Experimental and Cognitive Psychology
Cited by
4 articles.
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