Roles of body image-related experiential avoidance and uncommitted living in the link between body image and women’s quality of life

Abstract

The current study aimed to test whether the associations of body mass index, body image discrepancy, and social comparison based on physical appearance with women's psychological quality of life (QoL) would be explained by the mechanisms of body image-related experiential avoidance and patterns of uncommitted living. The sample was collected from October 2014 to March 2015 and included 737 female college students (aged between 18 and 25 years) who completed validated self-report measures. Results demonstrated that the final path model explained 43% of psychological QoL and revealed an excellent fit. Body image-related experiential avoidance had a meditational role in the association between body image discrepancy and psychological QoL. Further, the link between social comparison based on physical appearance and psychological QoL was partially mediated by body image-related experiential avoidance and uncommitted living. These findings indicate that the key mechanisms of the relationship between body image and young women's QoL were those related to maladaptive emotion regulation. It thus seems that interventions aiming to promote mental health in this population should promote acceptance of internal experiences related to physical appearance (e.g., sensations, thoughts, or emotions) and the engagement in behaviors committed to life values.