COVID-19-Related distress, body image, and eating behaviors: a cross-sectional explanatory model

The COVID-19 pandemic has been associated with increased body dissatisfaction and disordered eating behaviors in adolescents. To better understand these associations, this study tested an explanatory model in which appearance-focused social media use, internalization of social media pressure, and mindfulness abilities mediated the relationship between COVID-related distress and body dissatisfaction, which in turn was associated with dietary restraint and binge eating episodes.

Adolescents (N = 493, M_age= 16.7; 47.5% girls) recruited within high schools completed online measures. We conducted model testing through path analysis in MPlus, using modification indices to derive a well-fitting model.

The initially hypothesized model was a poor fit for the data. The final well-adjusted model confirmed several significant paths and supported the parallel mediational roles of social media (specifically, the use of appearance-focused social media and internalization of social media pressure) along with mindfulness, on the relationship between COVID-19-related distress and body satisfaction. Model adjustments involved adding three paths, resulting in two additional significant indirect effects, and suppressing one path.

Findings suggest that mindfulness, media use and the internalization of social media pressure are potential key processes explaining body dissatisfaction and eating disorders among adolescents who experienced higher levels of COVID-related distress.