(Dis) Satisfaction with body image in young chilean women aged 15 to 25 years: in the line of prevention

Abstract

There are several studies focused on the analysis of body image in patients with eating disorder, however the role of the satisfaction with the body itself in non- clinical samples has been little studied. Objective: Describe the perception of body image in adolescents and young people between fifteen and twenty years old, without latent psychiatric diagnosis. Methods: A qualitative descriptive approach based on the Grounded Theory. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to seventeen women. Results: The results are grouped into four descriptive categories: (1) Printing and meanings associated with body image; (2) Body image attitudes; (3) Body image preoccupation; (4) Body perception and demand for change. From all these, data analysis suggests an explanatory model for body dissatisfaction. Conclusions: We conclude that dissatisfaction is a common aspect between the two age groups. Nevertheless, the adolescent group evidenced a greater dissatisfaction, because their speeches indicate that general body dissatisfaction is a normalized aspect among people of their same age range. These conclusions could lead to the development of disease preventive guidelines in normal population.

Keywords

• Imagen corporal
• Insatisfacción
• Factores protectores
• Factores de riesgo
• Trastornos alimentarios