The role of formal mentoring on business success and self-esteem in participants of a new business start-up program

The current study investigated the relationship between career-related mentoring, psychosocial mentoring, business success, and self-esteem in participants of a program that was designed to assist in the establishment of a new business. Seventy-seven protégés and their matched mentors were included in the study. A comparison of mentor and protégé perceptions revealed that mentors considered themselves to provide higher levels of psychosocial support than did the protégés. Protégé perceptions of business success were predicted by the frequency of mentor contact and the level of career-related support provided by their mentor.

Extreme surfing : personal and psychological aspects of big wave riders

This qualitative study investigated personal and psychological aspects of big wave riders. A cross-sectional design with non probability purposive sampling was used to gain personal interviews with 32 elite surfers who regularly ride big, life threatening waves. Each athlete was asked three open questions: 1. What do you think are the most important qualities and attributes a surfer needs for riding big waves? 2. What type of mindset is best for riding big waves?, and 3.What motivates you to ride big waves? Content analysis of the taped interview transcripts revealed seven key qualities and attributes including having a thrill seeking, confident and goal oriented personality, a high level of mental strength and control, and an intimate relationship with the ocean. The best mindset included an individually defined arousal level, a committed attitude, and a simple, yet highly aware, focus. Motivations were primarily intrinsic, though drives indicative of a behavioral addiction to the act of riding big waves also emerged. Evidence of common developmental stages for riding big waves also arose from the interviews. Optimal mental approach and preparation techniques are discussed that will enable big wave riders, and other extreme athletes, to more safely and successfully manage extreme situations.

Examination of a multi-factorial model of body-related experiences during pregnancy : the relationships among physical symptoms, sleep quality, depression, self-esteem, and negative body attitudes

The aim of this cross-sectional study was to investigate relationships among women's body attitudes, physical symptoms, self-esteem, depression, and sleep quality during pregnancy. Pregnant women (N = 215) at 15–25 weeks gestation completed a questionnaire including four body image subscales assessing self-reported feeling fat, attractiveness, strength/fitness, and salience of weight and shape. Women reported on 29 pregnancy-related physical complaints, and completed the Beck Depression Inventory, Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale, and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. In regressions, controlling for retrospective reports of body image, more frequent and intense physical symptoms were related to viewing the self as less strong/fit, and to poorer sleep quality and more depressive symptoms. In a multi-factorial model extending previous research, paths were found from sleep quality to depressive symptoms to self-esteem; self-esteem was found to be a mediator associated with lower scores on feeling fat and salience of weight and shape, and on higher perceived attractiveness.

Body image and self-esteem across age and gender : a short-term longitudinal study

This study examined the relationship between body image and self-esteem across time and age for men and women. Participants were 150 men and 239 women aged between 20 and 86 years (M=59.73), recruited from the general population in Australia. They completed a questionnaire assessing self-esteem, body dissatisfaction, body importance, and a range of other domains of life satisfaction at baseline and 2 years later. Cross-sectionally, we found that higher self-esteem was associated with lower body dissatisfaction, but there was no consistent relationship between these variables across time for age and
gender. Women were more dissatisfied with their bodies than men; yet, men placed greater importance on their appearance than women, and also reported high levels of body dissatisfaction.

Factors in youth physical activity participation : from psychological aspects to environmental correlates

Understanding influences on children's physical activity and how these vary by activity and subgroup, such as age and sex of the child, is important for informing the development of effective and targeted interventions. Two cohort studies were conducted across socioeconomic areas of Melbourne, Australia, between 2001 and 2008 among a combined sample of more than 2,700 children aged 5-6 years and 10-12 years at baseline. Data were collected via surveys, and children wore the Actigraph accelerometer for 8 days. Five individual, 10 social, and 17 physical environmental factors were significantly associated with children's physical activity. Patterns of association varied according to the age and sex of the child and also according to the type of activity. These studies provide some insights into the various levels of influence on children's physical activity. More longitudinal and intervention research is needed to better understand the mechanisms of change in children's physical activity behaviour.

Social comparisons, appearance related comments, contingent self-esteem and their relationships with body dissatisfaction and eating disturbance among women

This study examined social comparisons, appearance related comments and contingent self-esteem, and their relationships with body dissatisfaction and eating disturbance in young adult women. Importantly, the role of both positive and negative appearance related comments, and upward and downward comparisons, were investigated. A self-report questionnaire assessing each of these variables was completed by one hundred and ninety-six women aged 18–35. A higher frequency of negative comments and contingent self-esteem were associated with higher upward comparisons, and more positive comments were associated with higher downward comparisons. Overall, social comparisons were shown to be more important than verbal commentary and contingent self-esteem. More upward comparisons and less downward comparisons uniquely predicted higher body dissatisfaction and eating disturbance. In addition, negative appearance comments were found to be more salient than positive comments. Negative comments and contingent self-esteem uniquely predicted more eating disturbance but positive comments were not a predictor of body dissatisfaction or eating disturbance. Longitudinal studies are now required to establish the direction of these relationships and to more fully examine the interplay among the factors. In addition, given that our study only assessed self-reported social comparisons, our findings need to be validated against experimental methods.

Actual/ideal body images of high school girls and how it affects their self-esteem : implications for educational and clinical institutions

Given that adolescence is a critical period for the development of a positive self-concept and body image, it is imperative that educators have an understanding of adolescent students' body image and their dieting practises and behaviours. Negative body image is an issue that is rife within the adolescent student population in Australia and around the world, and is a factor that is commonly associated with and linked to disturbed eating behaviours and chronic eating disorders like Anorexia Nervosa (AN). Despite the intuitive appeal and importance of investigating adolescents' body image in terms of what adolescents would like to look like and what they think that they look like now, very little research has investigated these concepts. Furthermore, very little research has explored whether there is a difference between these two constructs how this may affect adolescents' self-esteem. This study therefore aimed to explore the actual and ideal body images of adolescent high school girls aged between 12 and 18 years in two samples of adolescents, one with eating disorders (n=76, clinical sample) and one without (n=823 high school sample). Additionally, this study investigates these constructs in relation to self-esteem levels. The results of this study have important implications for educators and clinicians within educational and clinical settings.

Does body satisfaction influence self-esteem in adolescents' daily lives? An experience sampling study

This study examined, within the context of the Contingencies of Self-Worth model, state-based associations between self-esteem and body satisfaction using the experience sampling method. One hundred and forty-four adolescent girls (mean age = 14.28 years) completed up to 6 assessments per day for one week using Palm Digital Assistants, in addition to baseline measures of trait body satisfaction and self-esteem. Results showed considerable variation in both state-based constructs within days, and evidence of effects of body satisfaction on self-esteem, but not vice versa. Although these state-based associations were small in size and weakened as the time lag between assessments increased for the sample as a whole, individual differences in the magnitude of these effects were observed and predicted by trait self-esteem and body satisfaction. Collectively, these findings offer support for key tenets of the Contingencies of Self-Worth model.

Maternal depressive and anxiety symptoms, self-esteem, body dissatisfaction and preschooler obesity: a cross-sectional study

The primary aim of the present study was to cross-sectionally examine the associations between maternal psychosocial variables, child feeding practices, and preschooler body mass index z-score (BMI-z) in children (aged 2–4 years). A secondary aim was to examine differences in child weight outcomes between mothers scoring above and below specified cut-offs on the psychosocial measures. Two hundred and ninety mother–child dyads were recruited from Melbourne, Australia, and completed questionnaires examining demographic information, mothers’ depressive and anxiety symptoms, self-esteem and body dissatisfaction, restrictive and pressure child feeding practices, and preschoolers’ BMI-z scores. Independent t-tests and hierarchical multiple regression were employed to analyse the data. In the final regression model, none of the maternal psychosocial measures or feeding practices predicted child BMI-z scores; maternal body mass index and employment status were the only predictors of preschooler BMI-z. However, independent t-tests revealed that children of mothers with elevated body dissatisfaction scores had significantly higher BMI-z scores than children of mothers without elevated scores. The results suggest that psychosocial variables are not related, cross-sectionally, to preschooler weight outcomes; however, further research is needed to replicate the group differences noted between mothers with and without body dissatisfaction, and to track these relationships longitudinally.