Cross-sectional virtual reality study reveals that self-disgust increases visual attention to weight-related body areas in female students, suggesting a mechanism reinforcing negative body image.
OBJECTIVE: This study examines the relationships between self-disgust, body dissatisfaction (BD), and attentional biases (AB) toward weight-related body areas, exploring whether self-disgust predicts attentional avoidance and moderates the relationship between BD and AB. METHOD: Using virtual reality and eye-tracking technology, 78 female students viewed their virtual bodies in a mirror to assess gaze patterns as an indicator of attentional bias. RESULTS: BD was positively associated with both AB and self-disgust. Contrary to expectations, self-disgust correlated with increased attention to weight-related areas rather than avoidance and did not moderate the BD-AB relationship. DISCUSSION: These findings suggest that self-disgust may reinforce attention toward weight-related areas, contributing to negative body image. Future research should explore these mechanisms in clinical populations to inform targeted interventions.
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Ascione et al. (2025) studied this question.
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