29th Annual Student Research Conference
The Prevalence of Body Image Issues Among Sorority Women
Leyna M. Craigmile*, Kacie C. Isaacson, and Sung E. Huh
Dr. Alicia Wodika, Faculty Mentor
Eating disorders are serious and prevalent conditions among college-aged women. To research body image issues further, a study was conducted at a Midwestern liberal arts university to ascertain whether there was a correlation between affiliation in a Panhellenic sorority and high levels of body dissatisfaction. Due to the stereotype of sorority women being overly concerned with their appearance and with the small amount of research on the topic, it was hypothesized that Greek women have higher levels of body dissatisfaction than unaffiliated women. An IRB-approved, 46-item survey was designed to measure body dissatisfaction and social support levels of affiliated and non-affiliated female participants. Participants (n=686) were surveyed from spring 2015 through spring 2016. Affiliated women (n=459) reported higher levels of body dissatisfaction (M= 4.501) from a possible score of 30 regarding their appearance. Future analyses will compare body dissatisfaction and social support levels of affiliated and non-affiliated women.
Keywords: affiliated, non-affiliated, body dissatisfaction, social support, body image, levels, survey, college-aged
Topic(s):Health Science
Presentation Type: Oral Paper
Session: -4
Location: MG 1098
Time: 1:45