Ballet, Body Image, and Mirror Exposure

This study investigated how mirrors impacted body image in two beginner-level ballet classes: one with partial mirror use and one with full mirror use. At the beginning and end of a 14-week semester, 34 students were administered the Cash 69-item Body Self-Relations Questionnaire (MBSRQ) and responded to open-ended questions with a subset of students interviewed. For the MBSRQ Overweight Preoccupation scale, there was a significant ANOVA Class x Appearance Evaluation x Time interaction (p = .012). For the partial classes and for full mirror class students with high appearance satisfaction, Overweight Preoccupation did not change or decrease. However, Overweight Preoccupation increased for the full mirror students with low appearance satisfaction. Full mirror students primarily used the mirror for self-correction and for peer comparison; they prioritized visual learning. Partial mirror students de-emphasized the mirror, or found it distracting, and generally prioritized kinetic learning.