Cognitive representations of bodily parts and products: implications for health behavior

This study investigated the unexplored hypothesis that people may have cognitive representations of the body's parts and products (body schema) and that these may be relevant to illness behavior. Factor and MANOVA analyses revealed that body parts are viewed as differing in the Stigma attached to them and in the extent to which they are seen as Important, Vulnerable, Sexual, and Private, with these five dimensions found to be independent of age and health history. Seeking help for dysfunction varied across body parts, with subjects reluctant to seek help for highly stigmatized and private parts but likely to seek help for parts viewed as important and vulnerable. Significant gender and ethnic differences in representations of body parts also emerged.