1. A cognitive dissonance body image intervention 'Free Being Me' delivered by guide leaders to adolescent girl guides in India: A pilot and acceptability trial.
- Author
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Paraskeva N, Pegram G, Goel R, Mandhaani M, Suneja V, White P, and Diedrichs PC
- Subjects
- Female, Humans, Adolescent, Pilot Projects, Self Concept, India, Body Image psychology, Cognitive Dissonance
- Abstract
This pilot study assessed the acceptability and pre-post intervention effects of a cognitive dissonance-based body image intervention, Free Being Me, delivered by Guide leaders to adolescent girls in India. Girls aged 11-14 years (Mage = 12.6, N = 117), who were members of the national scouting and guiding association of India, received the intervention across five weekly 1-hour group sessions. The primary outcome (body esteem) and secondary outcomes (self-esteem, internalisation of appearance ideals, negative and positive affect, and life disengagement) were measured pre-intervention and immediately post-intervention. The intervention was acceptable. Adolescent girls reported high levels of comfort (89%), enjoyment (90%), and perceived importance (92%) with suggestions for improvement including more interactive activities. Facilitator adherence and competence delivering Free Being Me was rated good. Significant within-groups pre-post intervention improvements in body esteem (Cohen's d = 0.28) and reductions in internalisation of appearance ideals (Cohen's d = 0.49) were identified. No changes to self-esteem, negative or positive affect, or life disengagement were observed. This study suggests that Free Being Me is acceptable for community-based delivery and Guide leader format with promising pre-post intervention effects. Going forward, a randomised controlled trial is necessary to make confident interpretations on the effectiveness of Free Being Me., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest Phillippa Diedrichs is an independent consultant to the Dove Self-Esteem Project. The authors declare no other conflicts of interest in relation to this work., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)
- Published
- 2024
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