Challenging beliefs to prevent eating disorders
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Challenging beliefs to prevent eating disorders
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[ID] => 558684
[post_author] => 12815
[post_date] => 2024-12-25 13:46:10
[post_date_gmt] => 2024-12-25 18:46:10
[post_content] => Practice Passage (Question 1-5)
*This passage is the property of Khan Academy and has been reformatted into an AAMC-style interface in their entirety by MedLife Mastery. MedLife Mastery does not endorse and is not an affiliate of Khan Academy.
Current literature suggests that only 30% of individuals diagnosed with eating disorders are able to fully recover. Because treatment outcomes are poor, more psychologists are focusing their efforts on prevention. A clinical psychologist develops a program for women with body image concerns. The program specifically targets thin ideal internalization, or the extent to which a woman believes that the ultra-thin, feminine ideal of beauty is related to happiness, success, and self-worth. Greater thin-ideal internalization is associated with development of eating disorder symptoms. To decrease thin-ideal internalization, the program requires participants to actively critique the thin ideal in a series of activities and exercises (like role-play games that challenge the importance of shape and weight and a writing assignment that discusses the dangers of dieting and unhealthy behaviors). Because participants will actively critique their long-held beliefs, the psychologists hypothesize that the activities in the program will produce cognitive dissonance, and the discomfort the participants feel will motivate them to change their attitudes and beliefs regarding the thin-ideal and body image.
A group of 400 women between the ages of 18 and 35 are recruited to participate in a study to evaluate the program’s effectiveness. 200 women are assigned to the dissonance program and 200 are assigned to a wait-list control group to receive the program at a later date. All participants complete questionnaires about eating disorder symptoms, body dissatisfaction, and thin ideal internalization pre and post-intervention. The present analysis examines data from the the first 200 women assigned to the dissonance program, with those participants divided into three cohorts based upon age. Cohort A (n = 78) includes participants between the ages of 18 and 23, Cohort B (n = 62) includes participants between the ages of 24-29, and Cohort C (n = 60) includes participants between the ages of 30-35. Table 1 presents pre- and post-test means for each cohort in the intervention group. The means are generated from likert-style ratings of symptoms and feelings, with higher numbers indicating higher levels of pathological ideals and symptoms, and lower numbers indicating lower levels of pathological ideals and symptoms. Means of thin-ideal internalization and body dissatisfaction have a potential range of 1-4; means of eating symptoms have a potential range of 5-30.
*Statistically significant differences in scores from pre to post at p<0.5.
[post_title] => Challenging beliefs to prevent eating disorders
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[post_modified] => 2024-12-25 13:46:10
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[question] => One participant from Cohort A reports high levels of eating disorder symptoms and thin-ideal internalization. This would indicate that being thin is incredibly important to her and that she feels that her shape and weight define her worth as a person. Which of the following actions could make her most uncomfortable and cause her to feel dissonance during the program?
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[description] => Reason for the Correct Answer:
Writing down characteristics associated with the thin-ideal would not directly challenge her beliefs about the thin-ideal.
Passive actions (like watching a video) do not necessarily result in dissonance.
Because the number of women who truly meet all of the criteria of the thin-ideal is very low, this would directly challenge any belief she has concerning her own ability to become the thin-ideal.
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[answers] => Array
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[0] => Array
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[each_answer] => A. Discussing how many women in society meet the thin-ideal
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[each_answer] => B. Writing down characteristics associated with the thin-ideal
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[2] => Array
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[each_answer] => C. Listening to other participants as they critique the thin-ideal
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[each_answer] => D. Watching a video about the history of the thin-ideal in today’s society
)
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[1] => Array
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[quiz_unique_key] => 3873426850
[question] => Which of the following best describes the baseline data?
[value] => Array
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[answer] => 2
[description] => Reason for the Correct Answer:
This is only referring to baseline data; restrict any observations to columns marked “Pre.”
Examine each outcome variable individually (first look at thin-ideal row, then body dissatisfaction row, followed by eating symptoms row).
All participants report similar numbers of baseline thin-ideal internalization and body dissatisfaction, but there is variation in eating disorder symptoms between groups. More specifically, cohort A reports the highest levels and cohort C reports the lowest
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[answers] => Array
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[0] => Array
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[each_answer] => A. Participants reported similar levels of thin-ideal internalization and eating disorder symptoms, but at least one cohort differed on levels of body satisfaction.
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[1] => Array
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[each_answer] => B. Participants reported similar levels of thin-ideal internalization and body dissatisfaction, but at least one cohort differed on levels of eating disorder symptoms.
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[each_answer] => C. Participants reported similar levels of body dissatisfaction and thin-ideal internalization, but at least one cohort differed on levels of thin-ideal internalization.
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[each_answer] => D. Participants from all cohorts reported similar levels of thin-ideal internalization, body dissatisfaction, and eating disorder symptoms.
)
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[quiz_unique_key] => 83407773
[question] => Selective exposure is a strategy used to reduce dissonance and involves avoiding information that might cause discomfort. One participant from cohort C reports post-program outcomes that are significantly higher than the average reported scores for the rest of her cohort and wants to act in a way that allows her to retain her attitudes about shape and weight. If this particular participant engages in selective exposure after the program to reduce her dissonance, how might she act?
[value] => Array
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[answer] => 1
[description] => Reason for the Correct Answer:
Cohort C represents a group of women who did not improve significantly on measures of thin-ideal internalization, body dissatisfaction, or eating disorder symptoms.
If a score is higher than average scores from cohort C, this would suggest that the individual still has high levels of thin-ideal internalization, body dissatisfaction, and eating disorder symptoms.
Because the individual is still experiencing dissatisfaction, eating disorder symptoms, and thin-ideal internalization, her dissonance reduction strategy would involve easing discomfort by avoiding information that challenges her current beliefs. In this case, this would include avoiding information associated with moderation and body acceptance.
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[answers] => Array
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[0] => Array
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[each_answer] => A. Refraining from purchasing fashion and health magazines that promote moderation and body acceptance
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[1] => Array
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[each_answer] => B. Talking exclusively with individuals who are overweight to reduce thin-ideal internalization and promote body acceptance
)
[2] => Array
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[each_answer] => C. Journaling about what she learned in the program to decrease her body dissatisfaction by detailing the positive aspects of her body
)
[3] => Array
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[each_answer] => D. Asking friends and family to avoid talking about shape and weight and actively shifting the focus of conversation about appearance
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[3] => Array
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[quiz_unique_key] => 2261298308
[question] => Based on the results outlined in Table 1, which of the following conclusions is most reasonable for the researchers to state about the effectiveness of the program?
[value] => Array
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[answer] => 1
[description] => Reason for the Correct Answer:
There is no evidence in the passage to suggest that body image would not matter to older women, so there is not enough information to make this conclusion.
The oldest group of women (Cohort C) responded similarly to cohorts A and B on body dissatisfaction and thin-ideal internalization at baseline. Thus, if floor effects (or the inability to get a lower score because the score is already low at baseline) were indeed a factor, none of the three cohorts would have improved on body dissatisfaction or thin-ideal internalization.
The youngest group of women had the highest scores on two of three variables, and had the greatest reduction from pre to posttest on all three variables. In addition, the statement about younger women with high baseline levels of symptoms makes the fewest assumptions about causation and simply relies on the data. This is the most logical conclusion that the researchers could state about the effectiveness of the program.
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[answers] => Array
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[each_answer] => A. Dissonance-based programs may be effective for younger women with high baseline levels of eating disorder symptoms, body dissatisfaction, and thin-ideal internalization.
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[each_answer] => B. Dissonance-based programs may be effective for all women because all cohorts reported similar decreases in body dissatisfaction, eating disorder symptoms, and thin-ideal internalization.
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[2] => Array
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[each_answer] => C. Dissonance-based programs may not be as effective for older women because the information is not as relevant to them; body image issues are only experienced by younger women.
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[each_answer] => D. Dissonance-based programs may not be as effective for older women because their baseline levels of eating disorder symptoms, body dissatisfaction, and thin-ideal internalization are already low and thus there is a floor effect.
)
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[4] => Array
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[quiz_unique_key] => 574431310
[question] => The researchers decided to add additional exercises to the program. Which of the following activities would likely create dissonance and reduce thin-ideal internalization?
[value] => Array
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[answer] => 3
[description] => Reason for the Correct Answer:
The activity must be focused on thin-ideal internalization, which is related to appearance, not food.
Standing in front of a mirror and listing negative qualities would likely increase thin-ideal internalization.
Writing a critical essay about unrealistic body types in the fashion industry would directly challenge a person’s belief about beauty in society, which would create dissonance and reduce thin-ideal internalization.
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[each_answer] => A. Journaling about the experience of eating meals and describing in detail any negative feelings after eating.
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[each_answer] => B. Standing in front of a mirror and making a list of qualities that could easily be changed through diet and exercise.
)
[2] => Array
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[each_answer] => C. Writing an essay that criticizes the use of photo-editing software to create unrealistic looking body types in magazines.
)
[3] => Array
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[each_answer] => D. Writing an essay that criticizes the food industry for contributing to the obesity crisis by adding chemicals to foods and creating food addiction.
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