ArticleEating and weight disorders : EWD2022
Does comparison of self with others influence body image among adult women? An experimental study in naturalistic settings.
Article in Eating and weight disorders : EWD, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
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Who cites it
10 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- The standalone effect of safety behavior manipulations: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Clinical psychology review · 2026Pooled it
- The role of media in reducing and reinforcing stigma: A randomized controlled trial investigating the impact of positive and negative representations of visible difference.British journal of health psychology · 2026Trial
- Effects of Reducing Social Media Use in Women With Depressive Symptoms.Journal of cognitive psychotherapy · 2026Article
- Unpacking the indirect association between problematic short-form video use and appearance anxiety.Journal of eating disorders · 2026Article
- Understanding eating disorders in the Middle East: body dissatisfaction and westernization in Saudi Arabia and Turkey.Journal of eating disorders · 2025Article
- Seasonal body image dissatisfaction: a bi-hemispheric panel analysis of social media users across 4 years.Eating and weight disorders : EWD · 2025Article
- Do College Freshmen Who Engage More in Online Social Comparison Tend to Be More Confused About Themselves? The Roles of Rumination and Self-Compassion.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Unpacking beauty norms and body image: Development and validation of the perceptions of beauty standards scale.SAGE open medicine · 2025Article
- Daily Bi-directional effects of women's social media-based appearance comparisons, body satisfaction, and disordered eating urges.Journal of eating disorders · 2024Article
- The healthy eating movement on social media and its psychological effects on body image.Frontiers in nutrition · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
2 authors.
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Abstract
BACKGROUND AND
objectivesIt has been suggested that body comparison is a safety behavior in eating disorders. This experimental study investigates the causal impact of upward and downward body comparison on body image, eating pathology, self-esteem, anxiety and mood. It also considers whether trait body comparison and eating pathology are associated with responsiveness to upward and downward comparison.
methodsThirty-nine women participated. Each completed trait comparison and eating pathology measures. Following this, each participant spent an hour (on different days) making an upward, downward or neutral comparison in a naturalistic setting. After each condition, the participant completed measures of body satisfaction, self-esteem, anxiety, depression and eating pathology.
resultsParticipants were significantly less satisfied with their bodies following upward comparison. Both upward and downward comparison were associated with particularly negative effects if an individual had greater trait eating concerns. The effects of downward comparison were correlated with increased anxiety. LIMITATIONS: The sample was lacking in diversity. Compliance with the experimental tasks was not strictly monitored.
conclusionsUpward comparison resulted in lower body satisfaction, but downward comparison did not result in positive effects. However, trait eating concerns and comparison influenced the impact of both forms of comparison. Body comparison should be a target for treatment in CBT for eating disorders, particularly where the individual has a strong tendency to make comparisons with other people. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level III: Evidence obtained from well-designed cohort or case-control analytic studies.
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