Introduktion: Efter en förvärvad hjärnskada kan det inte tas för givet att kroppen upplevs som självklar i vardagslivet. Många har både fysiska och kognitiva funktionsnedsättningar. Syfte: Studiens syfte var att få en fördjupad förståelse för hur personer med förvärvad hjärnskada upplever sin kropp och fysisk aktivitet i det dagliga livet. Metod: Intervjuer genomfördes med 15 strategiskt utvalda personer som hade utretts för förvärvad hjärnskada. De intervjuades vid ett tillfälle 1-5 år efter debuten. Personerna var i yrkesverksam ålder och hade lättare motorisk och/eller lätt/måttlig kognitiv, emotionell eller personlighetsmässig funktionsnedsättning. Intervjuerna transkriberades och analyserades med the Empirical Phenomenological Psychological Method (EPP-metoden). Resultat: Ett övergripande tema och sex huvudteman identifierades. Det övergripande temat ”Ett nytt sätt att vara i världen” står för ett existentiellt uppvaknande. ”På väg hemåt” speglar processen att det tar tid att anpassa sig till sin nya livssituation, samt att komma till ett stadie av acceptans.”Tiden- en ny betydelse” handlar om att vardagen levs i ett långsammare tempo.”Tröttheten - en ständig följeslagare” belyser att tröttheten är ständigt närvarande. ”Kroppen döljer” beskriver fler av de dolda och osynliga funktionshindren som kan följa. ”Kroppen kommunicerar” och sänder signaler både inåt och utåt vilket individerna måste lära sig att känna igen. ”Kroppen kräver underhåll” visar på behovet av samt inställningen till fysisk aktivitet i ett långtidsperspektiv. Konklusion: Rehabiliteringspersonal behöver ha en djup kunskap om hur personer med förvärvad hjärnskada upplever sin kropp för att kunna vara ett stöd för dem när det gäller att finna lämpliga strategier hur vardagslivet hanteras. / Introduction: That the body can be taken for granted in daily life after an acquired brain injury is an incorrect notion. Individuals experience both physical and cognitive disabilities. Aim: The aim of this study was a deeper understanding of how people with an acquired brain injury experience their body and physical activity in daily life. Method: The interviews were conducted with 15 strategically recruited persons who have been examined for their brain injury. They were interviewed individually on one occasion, 1-5 years after the onset. The persons were of working age and had mild motor disability and/or mild to moderate cognitive, emotional disability or disturbance in personality. The interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed with the Empirical Phenomenological Psychological Method (the EPP-method). Results: One general theme and six main themes where identified. The general theme” A new way to be in life” stands for an existential wake-up. “On the way home” is a reflection of the process that it takes time to readapt to the new situation of life and reach acceptance. “Time- a new meaning” is about daily life which continues in a slower pace. “Tiredness- the constant companion” shows that you have to take tiredness in consideration. “The body hides” sheds light on the hidden and invisible disabilities which can follow. “The body communicates” and sends signals both inwards and outwards which the individuals has to learn to recognize. “The body needs maintenance” shows the need of physical activity through life and describes the attitudes. Conclusion: The rehabilitation persons need a profound knowledge of how individuals with acquired brain injury experience their body as being a support for them when it comes to managing daily life.

Kroppsuppfattningen handlar om hur en person ser på sin egen kropp. Höga nivåer av narcissism har tidigare sammankopplats med låga nivåer av kroppsmissnöje och höga nivåer av självkänsla (A. L. Jackson, S. K. Ervin & N. C. Hodge, 1992). Enkät undersökning genomfördes med syfte att studera om nivån av kroppsmissnöje hos pojkar i åldrarna 16 till 19 år (n = 104) påverkades av graden av narcissism samt graden av bas- och förvärvad självkänsla och nivån av BMI. Resultaten visade att narcissism var svagt korrelerande med både bas- och förvärvad självkänsla. Det fanns ingen skillnad mellan vare sig åldersgrupperna eller BMI nivåerna gällande nivån av kroppsmissnöje. Resultaten i den aktuella studien var överlag inte i linje med tidigare forskning.

I större städer är det vanligare med stress, oro och ångest. Av den anledningen fanns det skäl att tro att individer i storstäder skiljde sig från individer på landsbygden även gällande annan psykisk ohälsa. Studiens syfte var att undersöka om det fanns någon skillnad i ungdomars självrapporterade ätbeteende respektive kroppsuppfattning beroende på urbanisationsgrad, kön och BMI. Deltagarna i undersökningen var 140 gymnasieelever indelade i två grupper, storstad och tätort, utifrån urbanisationsgrad. Undersökningsmaterialet bestod främst av The Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-26), några frågor från Eating Disorder Inventory-2 samt Figure Rating Scale. Resultaten visade att det inte fanns någon skillnad i ungdomars ätbeteende respektive kroppsuppfattning beroende på urbanisationsgrad, men däremot beroende på kön och BMI.

Grounded in Self-Determination Theory (Deci & Ryan, 1985, 2000), the purpose of this thesis was to investigate the protective role of self-determined (i.e., autonomous motivation) relative to non self-determined motivation (i.e., controlled motivation) in response to various media portrayals of the female body. Findings from three laboratory experiments support these hypotheses. Women who felt less self-determined in their daily activities (Study 1 and Study 3) and in the regulation of their eating behaviors (Study 2), perceived more pressure from the media to be thin (Study 1), experienced more body dissatisfaction (Study 1 and Study 2), expressed greater concerns over the quantity of food in their diets (Study 1), and reported more negative affect (Study 2) following exposure to a video which exemplified the societal ―thin ideal‖ compared to a video which did not. They also generated more negative self-appraisals of their body‘s appearance and competence (Study 3), experienced more body shame (Study 3), and reported more introjected reasons for restricting their actual intake of chocolate (Study 3) following exposure to video which depicted the female body as an instrument of women‘s actions compared to one which depicted the female body as object (Study 3). Conversely, women who felt more self-determined in their daily activities (Study 1 and Study 3) expressed greater concerns over the quality of food in their diet (Study 1) and reported less vitality (Study 3) in response to media portrayals of women engaged in self-care (Study 1) and physical activities (Study 3). However, body dissatisfied women who felt more self-determined in the regulation of their eating behaviors (Study 2) formulated more intentions to monitor their food intake and eat fewer unhealthy foods (Study 2) after viewing a video of thin female models compared to no models. Together, these findings support a protective function for self-determined motivation and a potentiating function for non self-determined motivation.

Social self-preservation theory (SSPT) suggests that when faced with social-evaluative threat, a set of psychological and physiological responses are elicited concurrently (Dickerson, Gruenewald, & Kemeny, 2004; Kemeny, Gruenewald, & Dickerson, 2004). A series of studies examined the applicability of SSPT to the examination of social-evaluative body-related threats. In the first study, interviews were conducted to identify and describe uncomfortable body-related situations, and typical responses to such situations. Findings provided preliminary evidence of the applicability of SSPT to everyday body-related threats of young adult women – the threats, context of those threats, and responses to such threats were consistent with SSPT. The second study examined psychobiological responses to, and recovery from, a social-evaluative body-related threat. Findings from this study showed that the social-evaluative body-related threat elicited a psychobiological response consistent with SSPT; women in the threat group reported higher social physique anxiety and had higher cortisol following the threat. The third study sought to extend the applicability of SSPT to examine the psychobiological responses to, and recovery from, an anticipated social-evaluative body-related threat. In addition, the potential moderating effect of appearance investment on responses to a threat was examined. Findings from this study showed that women in the threat group reported higher shame and social physique anxiety after anticipating a social-evaluative body-related threat than following a quiet rest period for women in the control group. Results also indicated that both groups showed an index of decrease for cortisol, with the control group showing a significantly greater overall decrease than the threat group. Appearance investment did not moderate cortisol responses to a threat. Findings from the third study provide partial support for SSPT’s applicability to the anticipation of a social-evaluative body-related threat. Together findings from all three studies provide converging evidence for the use of SSPT in understanding the psychobiology of body image.

The role of mainstream media in women’s views of female beauty and body image has been well documented. However, few published studies have observed ethnic differences in physiological stress reactivity that may occur from pressures to comply with a particular image of beauty. This study examined whether the exposure to the mainstream ideal body image would negatively affect Latina women’s physiological and psychological functioning, and how their responses differed in comparison to their White counterparts. Participants included college-aged female students from Pitzer College who self-identified as Latina or Caucasian. Participants completed questionnaires assessing, body esteem (MSBRQ-AS; SATAQ; CDFRS), ethnic identity (SEE), state anxiety (STAI-State) and affect (PANAS) prior to and following exposure to Victoria’s Secret or Chrysler automobile commercials. Physiological stress reactivity was assessed through changes in systolic and diastolic blood pressure, as well as salivary cortisol. 3-way ANOVA tests indicated a significant 2-way interaction between condition and time on participants’ levels of diastolic blood pressure, F(1, 27) = 4.266, MSe = 29.803, p =.049, η2 =.136, as well as ratings of appearance evaluation, F(1,36) = 5.733, MSe = 3.692, p =.022, η2 =.137, and body satisfaction F(1,36) = 4.27, MSe = 4.747, p = .046, η2 =.106. Women who viewed the Victoria’s Secret commercials demonstrated increased levels of diastolic blood pressure and reported lower ratings of body esteem in comparison to women who viewed the Chevy Sonic commercials. Potential trends in anxiety reactivity and the internalization of mainstream female beauty in Latina women following exposure to the stimuli are further discussed.

Grounded in Self-Determination Theory (Deci & Ryan, 1985, 2000), the purpose of this thesis was to investigate the protective role of self-determined (i.e., autonomous motivation) relative to non self-determined motivation (i.e., controlled motivation) in response to various media portrayals of the female body. Findings from three laboratory experiments support these hypotheses. Women who felt less self-determined in their daily activities (Study 1 and Study 3) and in the regulation of their eating behaviors (Study 2), perceived more pressure from the media to be thin (Study 1), experienced more body dissatisfaction (Study 1 and Study 2), expressed greater concerns over the quantity of food in their diets (Study 1), and reported more negative affect (Study 2) following exposure to a video which exemplified the societal ―thin ideal‖ compared to a video which did not. They also generated more negative self-appraisals of their body‘s appearance and competence (Study 3), experienced more body shame (Study 3), and reported more introjected reasons for restricting their actual intake of chocolate (Study 3) following exposure to video which depicted the female body as an instrument of women‘s actions compared to one which depicted the female body as object (Study 3). Conversely, women who felt more self-determined in their daily activities (Study 1 and Study 3) expressed greater concerns over the quality of food in their diet (Study 1) and reported less vitality (Study 3) in response to media portrayals of women engaged in self-care (Study 1) and physical activities (Study 3). However, body dissatisfied women who felt more self-determined in the regulation of their eating behaviors (Study 2) formulated more intentions to monitor their food intake and eat fewer unhealthy foods (Study 2) after viewing a video of thin female models compared to no models. Together, these findings support a protective function for self-determined motivation and a potentiating function for non self-determined motivation.

Problematic levels of eating disorder (ED) spectrum problems are becoming increasingly pervasive on college campuses, especially among female college students. Research suggests that ED cognitions and a lack of body image acceptance are linked to diminished psychological flexibility (PF), which is linked to ED and other negative health symptoms. Two hundred thirty-six undergraduates completed an online survey, and mediation analyses were conducted. PF fully mediated the relation between ED cognitions and non-specific psychiatric symptoms and partially mediated the link between ED cognitions and ED symptoms. PF also partially mediated the link between body image acceptance and non-specific psychiatric symptoms, but not the relation between body image acceptance and ED symptoms. Findings suggest that clinical symptoms and one’s coping style are both important factors to take into consideration in case conceptualization and treatment, and suggest that therapies such as ACT that target PF may be beneficial in treating ED spectrum problems.

Several studies shows that dietary supplements do not have any proven effects on health, yet these supplements are increasing in sales. The study aims to find out what attitudes and knowledge people involved in physical activity have towards supplements and which factors influence them to buy supplements. How these factors differ between men and women was investigated. The study is based on answers from 100 collected questionnaires from people who are physically active at several gyms. Of those who participated in the study, 56 percent were men and 44 percent were women. The study showed that the influence of family and friends and to speed recovery after exercise, were the two most common reasons that affected men and women into buying dietary supplements. The study also showed that the majority of the participants found the supplements to be a good complement to their regular diet. Overall the study shows that the use of supplement is high among the respondents and women and men take supplements for different reasons.

The background of the study consists of the fact that knowledge about how eating disorders are developed and maintained is extensive. Socio-cultural factors and media influence when developing an eating disorder is of significance. When reviewing literature and previous research, knowledge about practical attainments when treating eating disorders are insufficient. The aim of the study was therefore to examine how staff who treats eating disordered patients think about body ideals, strive for success and media influence in treatment and rehabilitation. The theory consists of Foucault’s theory of power, how beauty ideals are dependent of the cultural context in which we live and what qualities are associated with beauty and body ideals. Also why young people are more vulnerable to ideals and Giddens theory of how our identities are formed and the meaning of the body and effects of lack of tradition. The theory is rounded off by how we manipulate our bodies, how the consumer society affects how we express our identities and shortly about treatment of eating disorders. I found that the majority of staff interviewed was aware of the influence of high demands, pressure and strive for perfection. It corresponds with that the cultural message include the body as a project that the individual has the responsibility of changing and improving. An eating disorder can also be a way of controlling physical change during puberty. The majority were also aware of the influence of dieting, socio-cultural effects, ideals and fixation with one’s own body. In combination with self-criticism and increased responsibility of forming one’s identity during adolescence, the individual is increasingly vulnerable to media influences. The individuals’ body image is affected by her own and others image of her body, and how well she matches the society’s ideals and norms. The response to media effects differ between the ones interviewed. The individual compare her self with images shown in the media, which shows a direct connection between slimness and success, status and happiness. Treatment shows an evident connection to normalisation process as a result of psychiatric exercise of power towards the patient.