Attachment to God Mitigates Negative Effect of Media Exposure on Women's Body Image

摘要

Relationship with God can be understood as an attachment relationship and hence, should confer psychological benefits similar to a human attachment relationship. Secure adult attachment has been shown to alleviate psychological distress, but this aspect of God attachment has not been widely explored. This study tested the buffering effect of od-attachment style against exposure to media images in 92 undergraduate women. Following random assignment, participants completed a measure of attachment to God. Then they viewed a brief slideshow consisting of photographs of ultrathin or normalweight models. Exposure to ultrathin models produced an increase in body dissatisfaction, but this effect was weaker for securely attached women. Results support the prediction that secure God attachment can buffer young women against the negative effects of thin-ideal media. Implications for prevention are discussed.