Imagery Ability and Body Image as Psychological Factors Connected to Predisposition to Orthorexia Among Female Team Sport Athletes

Purpose: The aim of this study was to examine the associations between imagery ability, body image, and orthorexia. Methods: One hundred female players of team sports such as basketball, volleyball and handball with experience of over 11 years (M=11.48, SD=2.85) took part in the study. The participants filled in an information form, including their age and sports training experience, as well as a set of questionnaires concerning orthorexia, imagery ability, and body image. The Sport Imagery Ability Questionnaire (SIAQ), Vividness Movement Imagery Questionnaire-2 (VMIQ-2), The Body Esteem Scale (BES) questionnaire, and the ORTO-15 questionnaire were used in this study. Results: The higher the scores on the Mastery subscale the lower the predisposition to orthorexia. We found a significant negative association between body image and the Mastery subscale of imagery with a predisposition to orthorexia. Findings revealed that Mastery imagery subscale and sexual attractiveness were significant predictors of higher orthorexia predisposition. Conclusions: The present paper revealed new factors which may influence the knowledge about orthorexia predispositions related to athletic populations.