Intimate Partner Violence and Body Shame: An Examination of the Associations Between Abuse Components and Body-Focused Processes

Abstract

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a stigmatizing, interpersonal violation with elements that confer risk for body shame. This study examined the role of body-focused processes (i.e., self-objectification and body surveillance) in the development of body shame within a sample of 61 primarily African American women, exposed to moderate to severe IPV. Severity of sexual coercion, physical assault, and psychological abuse were significantly associated with increased body shame and self-objectification. Mediation analyses revealed that self-objectification was a unique mediator of the relationship between psychological abuse, physical assault, sexual coercion, and body shame. Implications for women’s health care experiences are discussed.