Determinants of body-image shame

While research has established a critical relationship between body-image shame and eating disorder symptomatology, no studies have examined factors contributing to body-image shame. As such, the present study assessed the contributions of internalisation of the thin ideal, appearance-related teasing, physical appearance-related comparisons, global self-worth, body-image esteem, teasing history and parental care and parental overprotection. Participants were 146 female undergraduate students aged between 18 and 25. Internalisation of the thin ideal was found to indirectly predict increases in body-image shame through appearance comparisons, while negative body-image esteem indirectly predicted increased body-image shame via global self-worth. Contrary to expectations, parental bonding practices and a history of weight-related teasing do not predict vulnerability to body-image shame, directly or indirectly. Collectively, body-image esteem, global self-worth, appearance comparison and internalisation of the thin ideal account for 62% of the variance in body-image shame.