Image output impacts of DEXA on affect, mood and self-efficacy

Abstract

Body image can be a cause of mental barriers to behavior change for individuals. When one discovers that he/she is over fat a slew of thoughts and emotions may stream through mind, motivating or deterring him/her from making the changes that will better his/her health outcomes. Duel Energy Xray Absorptiometry (DEXA) is a device used to retrieve accurate information on an individual’s total body composition. Consequently it also produces a twodimensional image of that person’s full body soft tissue. This image may have an impact on a person’s emotional response to the information and thus that delicate time period of self evaluation. To test this, a repeated measures quasiexperimental study was conducted on college age participants (N=82). Subjects were either shown the image DEXA output (treatment group) or not shown this image (control). The Profile of Moods States, Positive Affect Negative Affect Scale and a selfefficacy of body composition change questionnaire were used prior to and just after each DEXA to show a change in mood. Although no main effects based on treatment condition were discovered, a main effect was discovered between change in negative affect and body fat percentage, F(2, 76) = 6.285, p < .01, showing that those who had a higher percentage of body fat had an increase in negative affect after learning what that body fat percentage was regardless of treatment condition. The strong null effects based on treatment conditions suggests that one does not have a change in mood or affect responses to seeing his/her image than those associated with learning his/her body fat composition.