Abstract
The present cross-sectional study examined how potential risk factors including appearance schema, social comparison orientation, and self-esteem are associated with body dysmorphic concern, and whether and how dispositional mindfulness as conceptualized based on the Monitor and Acceptance Theory may play protective roles in such relationships. University students completed a questionnaire survey that was either online or paper-based. The results revealed that appearance schema and social comparison orientation were significantly positively correlated with body dysmorphic concern, and that self-esteem was significantly negatively correlated with body dysmorphic concern. Moreover, the Acceptance component of dispositional mindfulness partially mediated the relationship between the risk factors and body dysmorphic concern. In contrast, the Monitor component of dispositional mindfulness did not show significant meditating effects in these relationships. These results suggest that the Acceptance component of dispositional mindfulness, although not its Monitor component, has buffering effects on the associations between risk factors and body dysmorphic concern. Examining the efficacy of mindfulness-based interventions that focus particularly on the dimension of Acceptance may be a promising approach for the prevention of body dysmorphic disorder.
