Risk and protective factors in women's artistic gymnastics: The relationship to disordered eating and negative body image

It has been consistently demonstrated that participation in sports that emphasize leanness and/or aestheticism are associated with higher rates of subclinical eating issues and body dissatisfaction. One such sport that has received attention is Women's Artistic Gymnastics. While participation in gymnastics has been found to increase physical activity, health, and fitness, numerous researchers have found that female gymnasts exhibit higher levels of disordered eating and body image dissatisfaction as compared to other athletes and non-athletes. Since over 52,000 girls in the United States participate in the sport of gymnastics, it is important to examine factors that may contribute to or protect gymnasts from disordered eating and negative body image.;The current study examined the relationship between amount of training and pubertal development to eating pathology and body dissatisfaction in a sample of 100 competative female gymnasts between the ages of 10- and 15-years. Additionally, perfectionism, athletic identity, and self-esteem were examined as potential moderators and objectified body consciousness as a mediator.;Results demonstrate that increased amount of time spent training was associated with lower levels of disordered eating and body dissatisfaction. Self-esteem was found to moderate the relationship between pubertal development and body dissatisfaction, and objectified body consiousness was found to mediate the relationship between pubertal development and pathological eating. Additionally, high levels of self-esteem and social identity may serve as protective factors against pathological eating and negative body image, while low/average self-esteem and elevated levels of objectified body consciousness may place gymnasts at risk. Future directions and clinical implications are discussed.