Self-compassion and body shame: Observing different pathways from body surveillance to eating disorders symptoms

Abstract

Introduction: Eating disorders include a variety of symptoms related to concerns about body shape, weight, and food consumption, frequently manifesting as behaviors like restrictive eating, binge eating, and purging. Body surveillance and body shame have consistently been associated with the severity of these psychopathologies, while self-compassion has been suggested as a protective factor against these conditions. This study aims to test the hypothesis that there is a relationship between higher body surveillance and increased eating disorder symptoms, and to investigate whether self-compassion and body shame may act as mediators of this relationship. Methods: Questionnaires were administered to 386 emerging adults (M = 26.11; DS=4.29) to assess Body Surveillance, Self-compassion, Body Shame, and Eating disorders symptoms. Results: Body Surveillance is negatively linked with Self-Compassion, while positively correlated with Body Shame and Eating Disorders. Furthermore, negative correlations were found between Self-Compassion, Body Shame, and Eating Disorders. Moreover, there was a positive correlation between Body Shame and Eating Disorders. In addition, a statistically significant indirect association was found from Body Surveillance to Eating disorders symptoms by Body Shame, and from Self-compassion to Eating disorders symptoms by Body Shame. Conclusion: These results suggest that maladaptive eating patterns may be associated with Body Surveillance and Body Shame, while Self-compassion may serve as a protective factor against these maladaptive attitudes. The implications for clinicians are thoroughly discussed.

Keywords

• Body surveillance
• Self-compassion
• Body shame
• Eating disorders