CHICAGO, June 25 (Xinhua) -- Writing letters with regard to one's body image can significantly increase women's body satisfaction, at least in short term, according to a study of the Northwestern University (NU).
The letter writing interventions fall into three types. For the first two types, the focus was on self-compassion: one was a basic self-compassion letter; the other was a self-compassionate letter directed specifically at the body.
"To induce a self-compassionate mind frame, women wrote letters to themselves from the perspective of an unconditionally loving friend who knew them well, saw all their perceived flaws and still responded with kindness and acceptance," said Renee Engeln, a professor of instruction in psychology in the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences at NU.
The third type of letter-writing intervention asked women to write a letter to their body, showing gratitude for all of its functions. Relative to control conditions, all three of these letters increased body satisfaction, Engeln said.
In the final study, the researchers turned the letter-writing instructions into a simpler, faster writing activity that could be completed online. It was the same basic idea, but women wrote a series of sentences instead of a more formal letter. More than 1,000 college women completed the online study, which once again showed that self-compassion and body functionality-focused letters could improve body image.
"The letters women in the study wrote were astounding. They were moving and inspirational, several brought tears to our eyes," Engeln said. "Many participants asked if they could take a copy of their letter home with them. It seems that even women who struggle with body image can practice a kinder, gentler way of thinking about their body. They just might need a framework to help guide them."
For more than a decade, Engeln has been studying cultural factors that make it difficult for women to have healthy relationships with their bodies.
"This is the first piece of evidence we can use to make a firm recommendation about a positive step women can take toward improving body image," Engeln said. "We think this could be a fabulous way to create a source of inspiration and comfort for women who have body image struggles," Engeln said.
The study has been published in the journal Psychology of Women Quarterly.
