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Effects Of Encounter Group Methods Upon Selected Measures Of The Body Image

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Effects Of Encounter Group Methods Upon Selected Measures Of The Body Image

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Content 72-6118
WHEELER, William Franklin, 19<+4-
* EFFECTS OF ENCOUNTER GROUP METHODS UPON
1 SELECTED MEASURES OF THE BODY IMAGE.
f
f University of Southern California, Ph.D.
[ 1971
; Education, psychology
University Microfilms, A X ER O X Com pany, Ann Arbor, Michigan
THIS DISSERTATION HAS BEEN MICROFILMED EXACTLY AS RECEIVED
EFFECTS OF ENCOUNTER GROUP METHODS UPON
SELECTED MEASURES OF THE BODY IMAGE
by
William Wheeler
A Dissertation Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
(Education)
August 19 71
UNIVERSITY O F SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
THE GRADUATE SCHOOL
UNIVERSITY PARK
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA 9 0 0 0 7
This dissertation, written by
................. .W .illiam -E, .*-W-he.el£LE.....................
under the direction of AA.S... Dissertation C o m
mittee, and a p p ro ved by all its m em bers, has
been presented to and accepted by T h e G radu
ate School, in partial fulfillm ent of require
ments of the degree of
D O C T O R O F P H I L O S O P H Y
DISSERTATION CpMMITTEE
PLEASE NOTE:
Some P a g es h a v e i n d i s t i n c t
p r i n t . Filmed as receiv ed .
UNIVERSITY MICROFILMS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I wish to express my appreciation for the patience
and constructive criticism offered to me by the members of
my research committee: Dr. Donald Schrader, Dr. James
Magary and Dr. Albert Marston. Their expert assistance
and cooperation have made this study possible. I also
wish to acknowledge my thanks to Dr. Robert Smith and Dr.
John Martios for their special advice and assistance.
To my fellow students and colleagues at the university
I offer thanks in recognition of their advice, criticism
and supportive humor.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
11
LIST OF TABLES IV
Chapter
PRESENTATION OF THE PROBLEM 1
II.
III.
IV.
Preface
Introduction
Background of the-Problem
Purpose of the Study
Rationale
Assumptions and Limitations
Hypotheses and Questions
REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE........................ 12
The History of Body Image Research
Some Dimensions of Body Image Research
Body Image and Personality Theory
Body Image Measurement
Recent Research
Body Image and Group Therapy
RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY..................46
The Design
The Sample
The Procedure
The Instrumentation
THE RESULTS........................................59
Description of the Statistics
Presentation of the Results
Analysis of the Results
SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS . . . 75
APPENDIX
80
BIBLIOGRAPHY 90
iii
LIST OF TABLES
Page
1. Analysis of Variance, Pretreatment, Jourard
Self-Cathexis....................................... 60
2. Analysis of Variance, Pretreatment, Jourard
Body Cathexis ..................................... 62
3. Analysis of Variance, Pretreatment,
Fisher's Body Prominence ........................ 62
4. Analysis of Variance, Pretreatment,
Secord Word Homonym.................................63
5. Self-Cathexis Scale. Anova: Repeated
Measures............................................64
6. Body Cathexis Scale. Anova: Repeated
Measures............................................65
7. Fisher's Body Prominence. Anova: Repeated
Measures............................................66
8. Secord's Word Homonym, Anova: Repeated
Measures............................................67
9. Correlations Between Dependent Measures,
All treatment Groups, Pretreatment ............. 68
10. Correlations between Dependent Measures,
All Groups, Posttreatment.......................... 68
11. Correlations between Dependent Measures,
Males, Pretreatment.................................69
12. Correlations between Dependent Measures,
Males, Posttreatment ............................ 69
13. Correlations between Dependent Measures,
Females, Pretreatment...............................70
14. Correlations between Dependent Measures,
Females, Posttreatment .......................... 70
iv
CHAPTER I
PRESENTATION OF THE PROBLEM
Preface
The proliferation of information regarding the various
styles of small group work which has been labeled as the
encounter group, presents a significant research problem.
There have been many changes and developments in group work
since the early T-groups were developed to meet the needs
of corporate management (18) . The encounter group movement
is much before the public eye. The methods, and the ther
apeutic value of the encounter group have generated a storm
of controversy and confusion. The combined popular media
currently reflect and stimulate public concern over the
growth of a phenomenon which is loosely referred to as the
encounter group. Nearly every popular American news weekly
has in the last year carried one or more articles on sensi
tivity training, marathon groups, nude encounters, and var
ious other current therapeutic developments. The result is
a staggering amount of unbalanced reporting and sensation
alism, which greatly endangers much of the potential value
inherent in these new methods.
An objective attempt to evaluate some of the outcomes
of the encounter group phenomenon is badly needed. It may
2
well be too late to avoid a repressive reaction from an
alarmed, uninformed public. In place of provocative jour
nalism, cumulative research into the effects of the encoun
ter group is necessary. There is an insufficiency of re
search available in the literature which might help to re
solve the controversy regarding the effects of the encounter
group. The following are a sample of the more important
questions to be answered: Is there a danger that people
will be greatly harmed by participation in a group exper
ience? Do people become highly dependent upon the encounter
group? Does participation in a group experience produce
lasting change in the individual? What are the relation
ships between various methods of group work and selected
outcomes for change?
It is with the last of these very general research
questions that this study attempts to work. No single re
search effort can hope to give more than a beginning ans
wer to such an important question. Therefore this research
constitutes only a partial beginning, a direction taken in
response to a perceived need for more information about a
controversial subject.
The research study described in this paper has been an
attempt to look at the relationship between group partici
pation and self-attitudes. The attitudes a subject has
about himself and his body are examined in terms of the
3
effects of encounter group participation. Particular at
tention has been given to the impact of new methods of en
counter work upon body attitudes and self-concept.
Introduction
This study was designed to investigate the role of the
encounter group as a possible change agent in the body im
age of the individual group participants. The study also
deals with the relationship between body image and self-
concept as modified by the group encounter.
The term body image as it is used in this research,
refers to the attitudes one holds toward the parts of the
body and its functions. Schilder has defined body image as
being in part that picture of ourselves which we hold in
our minds. The body image, as Schilder believed, is not
static but evolves in relationship to our contact and in
teraction with our environment (45). Changes in the way
in which individuals interact with their environment,
changes in interpersonal relationships, may reasonably be
expected to effect a change in body image.
Previous research reported by Jourard suggests that
there is a relationship between self-concept and body atti
tudes (22). Maturation and social interaction implement
the formation and development of the body image. A frame
work is developed for the way in which individuals can in
tegrate the feelings and experiences generated by their
4
bodies (22). According to Fisher, "A man's body is after
all, synonymous with his existence. It should come as no
surprise that his perception of its attributes colors his
experience of life" (14).
The body image has been defined as a set of attitudes
which a person acquires in the process of his social and
physical maturation. The body image is a fluid concept.
This study is a general exploratory investigation into the
way in which the encounter group might function as a modi
fying agent of the individual's body image. The attitudes
one develops toward one's body are partially developed as
a result of interpersonal experiences. The interpersonal
atmosphere of an encounter group might be a potent modify
ing agent of the body image.
This study has three major sections: the persons who
are participants in the encounter groups, the group leaders
and the methods they employed during the group sessions,
and the measurement of the body image phenomena. The study
deals with the relationship between measured aspects of the
body image and participation in an encounter group. It is
assumed that the personal interaction generated in an en
counter group can affect the attitudes which a person holds
concerning the way he looks and feels. This research also
deals with the relationship between certain approaches to
group work and particular outcome measures of body image.
5
Many of the new methods utilized in encounter groups focus
upon the need for the participant to get in "touch" with
the way he feels. Schutz makes a representative statement
on the importance of the body to the encounter group: "Un
derstanding the body is central to the philosophy of open
encounter. Man is indeed a unity" (47).
The following major variables have been outlined in
this research study: (1) the methods and procedures used
in the encounter group, (2) the effect of the methods and
procedures of the group upon the image the person has of
his body, (3) the relationship of his body image attitudes
and the concept he has of himself.
This research study has been based upon two important
assumptions. These assumptions are: (1) the encounter
group can function as a change agent in the life of an in
dividual, (2) the condition of bodily awareness and satis
faction are relevant to the concept an individual forms of
himself. If these assumptions are valid, an individual's
experience of himself in a group may bring about a change
in the awareness and the attitude he has toward his body.
If such a change could be expected, it might also be ex
pected that such a change in the image a person has of his
body would affect a corresponding change in self-concept.
The rationale of previous research provides a theoretical
framework for these assumptions.
6
Jourard and Secord (22) are among those to investigate
the attitudes a person has toward his body. Their research
concerns how positively or negatively a person views his
body. "Subjects' ratings of degree of body satisfaction
have shown moderate positive correlations with self-concept
ratings" (22:482). The role of the socialization process
as a potent agent in the formation of self-attitudes is
also reported in the literature. The value of having "po
sitive facilitating personal interactions" has been linked
by Fisher with the formation of an enhanced image of the
body and the self (14:18). The experience of being at
tended to and meaningfully perceived leads to an increased
feeling of self worth.
The encounter group is a setting in which the indivi
dual can experience himself in new ways, interact with
others and examine carefully the ways in which he relates
with other persons. It is an interpersonal event which can
allow the participant to understand the way in which he is
viewed by others and to increase his understanding of
himself (6). Therefore, the small group is much involved
in a situation by which people can express themselves and
be attended to. According to the above assumptions regard
ing the effects of interpersonal relations upon self atti
tude, it seems likely that the group experience will have
a measureable effect upon a person's feelings of like or
7
dislike for himself and his attitudes toward his body.
The (encounter) group offers one opportunities
for self-expression, confrontation with others,
and to share some of the concerns about life
and society, sex and love, home and professions
with others. (41)
One task of the present study was to discover which
methods of working with individuals in encounter groups
lead to a change in the image a participant has of his
body. The body image is here defined as the degree of
awareness, and satisfaction, and concern which an indivi
dual expresses for the parts and process of his body.
Secondly, what is the relationship between body awareness,
body satisfaction and the self-concept?
In order to answer the questions posed by this re
search problem, different encounter groups were established
and different methods were applied within these encounter
groups. Six different encounter groups composed of "normal
f l -
adult" males and females were established. Each group was
randomly assigned a group leader. One of these groups re
ceived no encounter group procedures. This was a discus
sion group. The remaining groups were exposed to different
encounter group methods and procedures. A series of en
counter group exercises which had been tape recorded were
utilized in the first of the encounter groups. The groups
were divided in terms of treatment procedures. Two of the
encounter groups utilized a format which involved nonverbal
8
exercises extensively. The remaining two groups functioned
on the verbal level of encounter work. The chief difference
between these groups was the degree to which subjects were
exposed to nonverbal encounter exercises. On a theoretical
basis the groups can be classified as either gestalt-exis
tential or non-directive-verbal. Each leader worked with
his group for nine weeks. There were nine sessions of two
and one-half hours per group. All subjects were tested be
fore and following the nine week period.
The research objective of this study was to discover
which of the groups might change on selected criterion mea
sures of body image and self-concept. It was believed that
certain methods of working with encounter groups would ef
fect measurable change in the selected outcome criterion.
A second important question deals with the possible corre
lation between group methods and change in a participant's
attitudes towards himself. In order to better answer some
of these general questions, a set of specific null hypo
theses have been formulated.
Hypotheses
H01: There will be no significant change among the six
different treatment groups on any of the four de
pendent variable measures.
H02: When compared against each other, none of the six
treatment groups will be significantly different
from any of the others on the test measures follow
ing the treatment.
9
H03: There is no degree of significant relationship be
tween the Jourard Body Cathexis Scale and the Jour
ard Self Cathexis Scale.
Questions
1. Is any degree of significant increase or de
crease in body awareness, concern for the
body, satisfaction with the body, and self-
concept, the result of differences in method
ology among the six treatment groups?
2. What is the intercorrelation between the four
dependent variable test scales?
3. Which of the groups reflect the greatest
change between the pretest and the posttest?
4. Which of the treatment groups change the
least on the test scales?
5. What is the effect of taped encounter group
exercises upon the dependent variables mea
sured, as opposed to the treatment groups
which did not receive this treatment?
The intention of this research study was the evalua
tion of particular approaches to encounter groups in terms
of specific changes in an individual's awareness and satis
faction for the parts and processes of his body and the re
lationship between such possible changes in body image and
a measure of self-concept.
No attempt has been made in this study to deal with
the changes in body image or self-concept which might be
produced by such other emerging procedures as the marathon
encounter, nude encounter groups, or dance therapy.
The subject sample was limited to groups of adults who
are the parents of children who are classified as talented
10
or gifted. The subject population is not presented as re
presentative of the population at large. A second state
ment of qualification derives from the relative lack of ex
tensive training among the leaders of the encounter groups
utilized in this research. Keeping within these limita
tions, this research has been conducted in order to advance
the available information regarding the effect of the en
counter group as an agent of change in the body image of
its participants.
Outline of the Remainder of the Dissertation
Six different treatment groups were established for
the research reported in this study. The first of these
treatment groups listened to a series of encounter group ex
ercises; treatment groups number two and three were run also
as encounter groups but did not listen to the tape used in
the first treatment groups; groups number four and five were
exposed to a nondirective style of group counseling; the
sixth and last of the treatment groups was a discussion
group and as such did not perform the encounter group exer
cises presented to groups one, two and three. In the re
mainder of this paper, the treatment groups are: tape en
counter group one, encounter groups two and three, nondir
ective groups four and five, and discussion group number six.
Each of the treatment groups was given a series of research
scales, pre and posttreatment, on selected aspects of the
11
body image. Each of the groups met for nine sessions of
two-and-a-half hours per session.
The experimental design, data collection procedure,
results and analysis of the data are presented in the re
mainder of this paper.
CHAPTER II
REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE
This chapter reviews the principal areas of research
in the body image phenomena. Seymour Fisher has written
extensive reviews of the literature in this field and he is
a major research contributor to studies on the body image.
Fisher has been the most important source of information on
the existence of research in this area.
This chapter begins with a general overview of those
particular areas of interest in the body image which are
most prominent in the literature. The development of in
terest and research into the phenomena of the body image
will be outlined. The latter part of this chapter is a
more detailed look at the various studies which have been
conducted during the past twenty years. The chapter con
cludes with a brief statement on the relationship of body
image theory to the new group therapies.
A review of the literature on the effects of encounter
groups reveals that there has been little systematic in
vestigation in this area. Campbell and Dunnette have re
viewed the literature in this area and conclude:
Research concerning the relative contributions
of specific features of the T-group is also
12
13
sparse. For example, there are no systematic
studies examining the influence of differences
in trainer personality and/or style on the out
comes achieved by participants. Case reports
and anecdotal records are all that exist. (6:97)
The fact remains that there is no consistent body of
information which outlines the effects of the encounter ex
perience. The personal commentaries, and anecdotal reports
must be accompanied by specific research efforts. Previous
accounts of the encounter group appear to be of the nature
of general impressions rather than specific questions
about particular methods and outcomes. Therefore, this
study attempts to explicate the relationship between cer
tain encounter group approaches and their effects on parti
cular outcome measures. Global research questions regard
ing the effects of the encounter group must await the de
velopment of more information.
A History of Body Image Theory and Research
It is difficult to fix the point in time when the
theory of the body image had its inception. The task is
complicated by the very diverse nature of research interest
in body image theory and the global nature of the phenomena
itself.
Since the time of Hippocrates, consitutional theorists
such as Kretschmer and Sheldon have asserted that a rela
tionship exists between personality and body structure
(21:344) .
14
Several of the early contributions to the developing
theory of a body image come from the fields of neurology
and psychiatry. In the sixteenth century a surgeon named
Ambroise Pard noticed that patients recovering from limb
amputation often reported strange and painful sensations
originating from the point of amputation. The patients re
ported that they could still "feel" sensations coming from
the missing limb. These sensations have since been refer
red to as the phantom limb concept (13).
Since the early work of Pare, neurologists became in
creasingly involved with research pertaining to a range of
bizarre attitudes and body experiences reported in brain
damaged patients. It was noticed that brain damaged pa
tients often were not able to distinguish right from left,
recognize parts of their body, or comprehend disfunction of
limbs. The observation of this strange behavior generated
a good deal of curiosity among neurologists. They wanted
to understand how the patient's conception of his body de
veloped and changed. Bonnier reported such case histories
in the nineteenth century. Early in this century the Ger
man neurologist Pick began to develop a model of a body
image in order to explain the phantom limb sensation in his
amputee patients. Henry Head, in 1921, developed a model
of the body image which he called the body schema. He was
one of the first neurologists to construct an elaborate
15
theory of the body image. Head believed each individual
builds a schema or model of his body which gives the person
a frame of reference against which all movements and
changes in posture are judged. He suggested that much of
the body schema operates on the unconscious level (13:4).
During the 1920's and 1930's neurologists classified a va
riety of body image distortions into clusters of symptoms
and attempted to use postmortem examinations of neurologi
cal patients in order to localize the site of the body im
age distortion in the brain. In 1935, Paul Shilder pub
lished his classic \^ork, The Image and Appearance of the
Human Body (45). It is a very detailed work on body image
distortion and gives consideration to the role of the de
veloping body image in normals. During this period the
neurologists had been classifying their observations into
four principal groups. These four principal areas of body
image distortion include: distortions of neglecting one
side of the body; denial of impairment; feelings of deper
sonalization; and experiences of unusual sensations (13).
In addition to the work of the neurologists, a second
source of theory on the body image has come from the field
of psychiatry. Psychiatrists noted that the symptoms ex
perienced by neurotics and psychotics often paralleled the
symptoms of body-image distortions observed in neurological*
patients. Lukianowicz has reviewed the literature on body
16
image distortions in psychiatric patients (29:31). He con
cludes that in psychiatric patients most body image distur
bances occur as a part of their basic psychiatric disorder.
A wide range of body image distortions have been observed
in schizophrenic and manic depressive patients. Shilder
contends that the distortions in both patients were "on a
continuum and could not be sharply distinguished" (45:15).
As with the neurological patients, reviews of schizophrenic
body image distortion seem to list four principal categor
ies of pathology. These abnormalities cluster into areas
of sex identity, feelings of disintegration, sensations of
depersonalization, and a loss of body boundaries (45:16).
Schilder (45) was among the first to study abnormal
ities observed in psychiatric patients which appeared si
milar to the bizarre behavior reported in patients with
neurological involvement. It was Schilder who compared the
body image phenomena of brain damaged patients with that
of schizophrenics. Schilder introduced the concept of the
body image to the field of psychiatry. He gave some organ
ization and structure to the wide range of clinical obser
vation and asserted that the body image is greatly influen
ced in its development by the socialization process. He
believed that psychiatric patients with body image distor
tions had probably experienced faulty socialization. In
addition to his investigations dealing with the body image
17
of psychiatric patients, Schilder also has written about
the development of a body image in normals. He combines
classical psychoanalytic theory with his approach to the
formation of a body image concept. He is credited with
being the father of modern body image theory (13). The
work of Schilder marks the beginning of modern research in
this area and thus concludes the historical overview of
body image theory.
The body is an object of sensation and perception
which the living, conscious individual cannot escape. The
body, its sensations and perceptions, are the basis for
the psychological development and existence of the indivi
dual. The attitudes formed by the individual about his
body will play an important role in the development of his
self-concept, his personality organization and his inter
personal relationships with others.
The scope of meanings assigned to the phenomena termed
as the body image covers a considerable range. The terms
"body concept," "body image," and "body schema" have all
appeared in the literature. It is unfortunate that so many
different words and terms have been used to describe the
events which occur in each individual as he responds to his
body as a perceptual object. The complexity and the over
lapping of these terms results from the complex nature of
the phenomena and from the fact that the phenomena have
18
been researched by many different professional disciplines.
In general, the body image refers to the picture of
one's body as it is formed in the mind. This image of the
body does not refer to some esoteric, mentalistic object
but rather to a perceptual event that contributes to the
individual's knowledge of who and how he is.
An Overview of Body Image Research Dimensions
The literature on the body image reflects a wide range
of research interests. The major research interests, as
reported by Fisher, appear to be in the following areas:
perception of body size, degree of body awareness, body
anxiety, the body as it relates to spatial and perceptual
organization, the existence of body boundaries, masculine-
feminine identity, and body attitudes (14:143-151).
The largest number of studies reported in the litera
ture on body image phenomena are in the area of the percep
tion of body size. It appears that when an individual is
asked to estimate the size of his body and its parts, a
number of self and body attitudes are called forth. There
have been numerous reports in clinical studies which de
scribe changes in behavior accompanying a shift in the pa
tient's perception of his bodily size. Field dependency
and self-esteem have been associated with such shifts in
size perception. Fisher has studied the occurence of
shifts in size perception in schizophrenics (10:144).
19
The body has been investigated as a potential stimulus
within the total perceptual field available to an indivi
dual. It is observed that individuals differ with regard
to how aware they are of their own bodies. Body awareness
seems to vary from individual to individual. It appears
that body awareness is related to personality parameters
and to the kinds of defensive strategy employed by persons.
Several projective tests including the TAT and Rorschach
have been used to study body awareness. Fisher has devel
oped a special means to evaluate the way in which indivi
duals allocate their attention to various parts of their
bodies. It has been shown that individuals differ with re
gard to the worth and meaning they assign to various sec
tors of their bodies (14:146).
Another aspect of body perception to be investigated
is that of body anxiety. It has been observed that indi
viduals differ with regard to the extent they fear damage
to the body. Body anxiety has been studied in hypochondr
iacs and patients anticipating surgery. Body anxiety has
been approached from a psychoanalytic view in terms of
"castration anxiety." The relationship between body anxiety
and other forms of anxiety within various populations is
not yet well understood (14:148).
The ability to make judgments about theposition of
one's body in space is yet another dimension of the body
20
image which has attracted the interest of researchers.
Witkin relates the ability of an individual to orient his
body in space to a number of personality variables and to
certain perceptual styles (14:147).
Fisher and Cleveland have spent considerable time in
studying the body boundary concept. This concept deals
with the way in which different individuals experience the
separateness of their body from the rest of the world. The
work of Fisher and Cleveland will be reviewed in more de
tail later in this chapter. The body boundary hypothesis
has been used to explain body distortion in schizophrenics,
delinquent behavior and the process of identity formation
in children 04:146).
The body image concept has also been studied in rela
tion to sex differences. The dimension of masculinity-
femininity identification has been studied in men and women
by means of human figure drawing techniques. Social de
sirability sets have made research in this area extremely
difficult. Research does indicate the existence of certain
sex difference with regard to size perception. Men tend to
overestimate the size of their bodies while women tend to
underestimate body size. There is some evidence to suggest
that women are more conscious of their body experience than
men (14:149).
The amount of satisfaction or dissatisfaction an indi-
21
vidual has for his body has been the focus of research.
Jourard (22) in particular has developed a means for study
ing the relationship between an individual's self-concept
and the attitudes he holds toward his body. Ego strength
and anxiety have also been studied in relation to body at
titudes (14) .
The degree to which an individual attends to interior
versus external sensory cues in order to maintain a con
stancy in his experience of "my body" has been the subject
of extensive research by Fisher and Cleveland (13:150).
Persons have been observed to vary in the degree to which
they attend to visceral as opposed to kinesthetic sensa
tions in order to sustain their body image organization.
The relationship between alterations in body image
and symptoms observed in psychotics and neurotics has been
still another subject of research. An amazing range of
body experiences have been reported in clinical observa
tions of the maladjusted. Body experiences involving
changes in body size, shape, sex, and weight as well as
other bizarre sensations have been frequently reported by
hospitalized patients (14) . However it is not well under
stood whether these bizarre body sensations are the cause
and/or the effect of the total emotional disturbance.
22
Body Image and Personality Theory
Fisher and Cleveland, following the lead of Schilder,
have discussed body image theory in relation to psychoanal
ytic theory (13). According to Fisher, "Freud saw the body
image as another means of describing how the initially un
differentiated organism develops an organized structure"
(13:30). Ego development proceeded when the child learned
to integrate sensations from his body surface and to use
these sensations as the basis for discriminating the boun
dary between himself and the rest of the world. The body
image served as the framework for the developing ego (16,17).
The concepts of fixation and regression have also
been associated with the body image concept. If an adult
regressed to a former stage of libidinal development he was
forced to handle his adult patterns of social interaction
in terms of a body image more appropriate to an earlier
stage of his physical development (15,16).
The theories of Adler, Rank, and Reich have also been
related to the body image theory (21, 39). Adler’s theory
of neurosis as a reaction to real or imagined organ infer
iority is indirectly linked to the body image attitudes (19).
Wilhelm Reich developed a theory of personality or
character theory which also appears to be related to body
image theory. Reich outlined the relationship between per
sonality conflict and particular patterns of muscle tonus
23
which he referred to as character armor. In certain con
flicts the individual armors himself as a protective mea
sure. This armor in turn affects the way the individual
will experience himself. The degree of rigidity of muscle
tone can be an index which will distinguish the disturbed
from the normal individual (39).
The implications of Rank's theory, in terms of the
body image concept, derive from his belief that persons may
regard their body as enveloped in a protective barrier si
milar to a womb. The barrier or womb becomes a security
device used to ward off anxiety (7).
A look at the current research literature on body im
age theory reveals that there are a number of studies rela
ting personality variables with body image theory (14).
Jourard and Secord have studied the aspect of body awareness
and satisfaction as determiners of self-concept. Wylie has
given consideration to body attitudes as an aspect of self-
concept (52) .
The relationship between cognitive set and body exper
ience has been investigated by Schachter (Schachter and
Singer, 1962; Schachter and Wheeler, 1962) (14). Person
ality variables have been investigated by Witkin as influ
enced by perceptual styles (51). Shontz, Holtzman, and
Cleveland have each contributed to the number of studies
relating personality theory to the perception of body size
(14).
24
Murphy is another personality theorist to outline a
connection between the development of the ego and the body
image (21) .
Murphy speaks of the infant's responses to his
own body as the germs of the self from which he
eventually learns to distinguish himself as a
distinct entity, separate from the environment.
(24:16)
Body Image Measurement Methods
During recent years there has been a proliferation of
methods designed to measure various aspects of the body
image. A variety of techniques have developed within each
dimension of the body image which has been studied.
In order to measure body awareness and body attitudes
such devices as human figure drawings, TAT stories, body-
word association tests, and body satisfaction questionnaires
have been developed. Body boundary studies have utilized
ink blots, draivings, and judgments regarding personal space
styles. Adjustable mirrors and tachistoscopic presentations
of the self have been used to study a subject's reaction to
his own body as a perceptual stimulus (14).
The use of patient drawings and paintings as projec
tive measures of the body image has been reviewed in the
literature. Anastasi and Foley surveyed the historical use
of painting and drawing as diagnostic tools (1). Machover
has developed the Draw-a-Person test as a means to evaluate
the body image. She states that "The drawing of a person,
25
in involving a projection of the body image, provides a
natural vehicle for the expression of onefe body needs and
conflicts" (31:5). The drawings are analyzed in terms of
size, line, placement, details, and position of body parts.
Machover suggests that figure drawing can be useful in the
formulation of the diagnosis of personality problems. In
a series of eight drawings it was reported that a graphic
representation of a manic mood change was represented.
Anxiety, tension and guilt were among the emotions reported
in the case described by Machover (30) . Margolis attempted
to study and record the progress of a schizoid girl in her
treatment with the use of the figure drawing test. Three
sets of drawings were obtained at the beginning, during and
at the end of a nine month period of therapy. They were
recorded and interpreted with the Machover method. Results
were compared with Rorschach and the Wechsler-Bellevue. The
conclusion drawn was that the figure drawings presented
particularly vivid shifts in the patient's status (31).
Not all of the reviews of the Machover D.A.P. have
concluded that it is a valid projective device. Fisher has
objected to the use of the D.A.P. as a valid tool for dif
ferential diagnosis based upon features of the drawings
which supposedly correlate with projected diagnostic symp
toms. Fisher and Fisher investigated the validity of the
D.A.P. as a means of diagnosis in paranoia (9). A total
26
of thirty-two drawings from patients previously diagnosed
as paranoid were evaluated by clinicians. Data revealed
that the clinicians with training in the use of figure
drawings showed no greater agreement among themselves in
their ratings of expression and stance as revealed in the
drawings, than did the ratings of untrained raters. The
drawings of paranoid patients were not successfully and
consistently labeled as paranoid by the judges. Fisher
concludes, "The total results suggest that it is precarious
to accept most of the current assumptions regarding figure
drawing analysis without the confirmation of further re
search" (9:727).
However, in 1963, fourteen years later, Fisher was
able to conclude that "Over all, the data suggest that there
is potential value in using body image measures for diag
nostic purposes and perhaps for clarifying mechanisms un
derlying personality disorganization" (11:519).
Nevertheless the general construct validity of the
D.A.P. has been sharply critized in a review by Roback. He
reports little factual evidence in favor of the use of fig
ure drawings in the assessment of personality (40).
In addition to the D.A.P., other tests have been em
ployed to obtain a measure of body image. Fisher has de
veloped and used the Body Experience Questionnaire and the
Body Focus Questionnaire. The Body Experience Question-
27
naire is a list of eighty-two questions relating to con
scious body disturbance in four categories. These cate
gories are depersonalization, body size, body boundary and
body contamination (14).
A second test used by Fisher in the assessment of
body image is the Body Focus Questionnaire. The B.F.Q.
consists of 110 paired body area items in nine different
categories. All items for the B.F.Q. and the B.E.Q. were
taken from review of clinical reports on the body image
experiences of disturbed individuals (14).
A third popular test was developed by Secord. This is
called the Word Homonym Test (48). Fisher has used a modi
fied version of the Secord Homonym Test in his research.
It is a projective device designed to tap the degree of un
conscious preoccupation with the body.
Jourard and Secord have developed a questionnaire
called the Body Cathexis Scale which has been used in order
to study the relationship of body concept to the self-
concept (21). All of these measurement approaches will be
described in greater detail as they relate to current re
search on the body concept.
Recent Body Image Research
Fisher and Cleveland have contributed extensively to
the body image literature. They attempt to assimilate their
28
own research with the total research data available and to
integrate their findings into a more generalized theory
concerning the part that the body image plays in personal
ity theory.
In their original work, Fisher and Cleveland studied
the body image of patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Their
studies disclosed that the subjects with arthritis were
quite sensitive to the perception of their body image. Data
was collected by means of intensive interviews, Rorschach
tests, TAT and figure drawings. The fantasies of the sub
jects were heavily loaded with body references (13).
Fisher and Cleveland concluded that one important aspect of
the body image would probably be the way in which indivi
duals view their body boundaries. They proceeded to devise
a method that might be used to assess the definiteness the
individual assigns to his body boundaries. They concluded
that the Rorschach presented the most potential. Those re
sponses assigning definite structure, definite substance,
and definite surface qualities to the boundary of the per
ipheries of the blots were labeled as Barrier Responses
(13). A second group of blot responses which lacked sub
stance and evidenced penetrability were labeled as Penetra
tion of Boundary Responses. Data was collected. The Bar
rier Responses and Penetration of Boundary responses were
recorded. They conclude that "Boundary firm people rather
29
than boundary weak people are more people oriented, more
spontaneous in expressing feelings and make more intimate
contacts" (13:58). It is the impression of Fisher and
Cleveland that unless the individual develops body image
boundaries of a certain minimum degree of definiteness, his
relations with others are somewhat restricted to attempts
to duplicate patterns experienced in his association with
such primary figures as mother and father.
Without the security of a moderately definite
boundary, the individual feels highly open and
vulnerable to the dangers he perceives about
him. Therefore, he tries to establish contacts
which will provide supplementary boundaries in
the same manner that his contacts with parental
figures did. He seeks to relate to people in
such a way that they will be screens between him
self and the outside, and will cushion the trauma
of unexpected occurrences. (13:363)
The work of Fisher and Cleveland represents the single
most important review and experimental contribution to the
current conceptual order of the body image in personality
theory. Dosey and Meisels have linked the concept of "per
sonal space" with the concept of body image (4:93). "Per
sonal space" refers to the buffer zone of actual distance
which individuals strive to maintain between themselves
and others. This buffer zone appears to enlarge during
periods of emotional stress and serves as a barrier against
perceived threats in the environment. Highly anxious per
sons who also have weak body boundary barriers were found
to maintain greater spatial distance in their relations
30
with others. Wylie also has reviewed the studies on body
image and concludes that it is an important element in
personality development (59).
From the field of anthropology have come studies in
the nature of "personal space" and the effects of body
movement in conversation. Professor Hall has written ex
tensively on the effect of distance and movement in The
Silent Language (20).
Fisher has compiled an inclusive review of the studies
on body perception in both normal and non-normal popula
tions. Several of these important studies will be included
in this chapter (14) . Fisher reports several studies in
the area of self-confrontation and perception. In these
studies the subject's body was used as a perceptual stimu
lus and the feelings aroused by this stimulus were measured.
Schneiderman (1956) used an elaborate instrument which con
sisted of a mirror constructed from a flexible sheet of
plexiglass which could be adjusted by the subject or the
experimenter to produce various degrees of distortion in
the image produced. The device was used in order to record
the amount of difficulty subjects evidenced in the recog
nition of their own images (14:34). Similar instrumenta
tion was used by Traub and Orbach (1964). An adjustable
plexiglass mirror was used to measure the ability of the
subjects to recognize their own images (14:35).
31
Deno (1953) used individual rear view photographs in
a study of self-recognition. Forty subjects were shown
rear view photographs with the heads masked. They were to
rate each for goodness of physique. In each case one of
the forty photographs was of the subject himself. The
data supported Wolff's (1943) theory "that it is difficult
for an individual to recognize representations of aspects
of his own body" (14:6).
Werner Wolff (1943) obtained pictures of his subjects
without their knowledge. These pictures of the subjects'
hands, feet, and profile were then shown to the individual
along with similar pictures of other individuals.
Wolff established that in their unknowing re
sponses to such self-representations people
not only manifested an unusual degree of af
fect but also revealed the content of impor
tant attitudes about themselves. (14:6)
Wolff's work was validated by Epstein (1955), Fisher
and Mirin (1966) and Sugerman (1961) (14) . All of the self
recognition studies focus on the attitudes and feeling
evoked in a subject when he is confronted with an image of
his own body.
The relationship between the body concept and the self-
concept is another area of research which has been reviewed
by Fisher. According to Fisher "Empirical work concerned
with the correlation between body concept and self-concept
has been sparse" (14:18). There are few valid scales in
32
existence which effectively measure the concept or atti
tudes which the individual holds toward his own body. The
Secord-Jourard Body Cathexis type of scale is one such in
strument (14:19). The test is designed to measure the sub
ject's degree of satisfaction with various parts of his
body. The scale was developed in 1953 and is most often
used in studies dealing with the self-concept and the body
concept. Pantleo (1966) has demonstrated that this scale
is heavily influenced by social desirability factors (14).
In their original work, Jourard and Secord showed a moder
ate correlation to exist between a body cathexis scale and
a self-cathexis scale (22). On the body cathexis scale,
subjects rated parts of their bodies such as legs, feet,
and hands on a five point scale which ranged from "strong
positive" to "strong negative" feelings. A moderate cor
relation was demonstrated between the subject's degree of
liking for his body and his concept of himself. The re
sults of Jourard and Secord (1954) were later substantiated
by Johnson (1956) and again by Gunderson and Johnson (1965)
(14). In a cross-validation study by Weinberg (1960), it
was shown that the body cathexis scale and the self cathe
xis scales correlated with the Maslow-Security-Insecurity
Inventory (47).
Zion (1965) studied the relationship between a self-
concept measure (Bell's Index of Adjustment and Values)
33
and a scale for measuring body attitudes. A clear relation
ship was shown between the self-concept measure and the
feelings of the subject toward his body (14).
The Body Cathexis scale has been used to study the re
lationship of the body image and attitudes held toward the
disabled. Epstein and Shontz (1962) discovered that the
more favorable an individual’s attitude toward his body, as
revealed on the Body Cathexis scale, the more favorable was
the individual's attitude toward the disabled (14).
Centers and Centers used the Body Cathexis scale to
study how parents of malformed children rated their own
bodies and the bodies of their children (14). In a third
study Noonan used both the Body Cathexis scale and the
Secord Homonym test (1953). It was found that the more fa
vorable was an individual's attitude toward his own body,
the more accepting he was likely to be of the disabled (14).
The Secord Homonym test is an association test in which the
subject is read a list of words. The words are selected
for their common body and nonbody meanings. The words colon
and graft are examples of the homonyms to which the subject
is to associate. A high number of associations with body
meaning to the homonyms was associated with a high degree
of concern with one's body. Secord and Jourard state that
there is a moderate correlation between the Body Cathexis
Scale and the Homonym test (14).
34
Aside from the projective techniques, the Jourard-Se-
cord Body Cathexis Scale and the Secord Homonym Test have
been most frequently used in studies relating body concept
with self-concept. The projective methods most used in
clude the Draw-a-Person test, Thematic Apperception Test,
and the Holtzman Ink Blots. Fisher reviews several studies
which made use of the Draw-a-Person test as a measure of
body image. Fisher concludes "the weight of the pertinent
evidence that can be extracted from the literature suggests
that the like-sex figure drawing produced by an individual
does mirror some aspects of his feelings about his body and
perhaps more broadly, certain attitudes toward himself as
a person" (14:72). There have been a number of studies
conducted to test the hypothesis that an individual pro
jects an image of himself when asked to draw a human fig
ure. Apfeldorf (1953) required judges with various degrees
of training in figure drawing analysis to match subjects'
figure drawings with full length photos of the subjects.
Judges were able to successfully match the figure drawings
of an unselected group of college students with their
photos. These same findings were validated in a similar
study by Apfeldorf and Smith (1965) (14) . In the studies
conducted by Apfeldorf, the amount of training in figure
drawing analysis did not appear as a critical factor in the
ability of the judges to obtain a correct match (14).
35
Schmidt and McGowan (1959) were also able to show that
in the ability to differentiate the figure drawings of dis
abled subjects from normal subjects, the degree of training
and experience of the judges was not a critical factor (14).
Simmons (1966) compared the figure drawings of college
students with their self-evaluations on a Semantic Differ
ential and adjective check lists. There was found to be a
significant correlation between the same-sex figure draw
ing and the Actual Self-rating on the Semantic Differential.
Simmons states that artistic ability was not a significant
factor in the study (14).
Hunt and Feldman (1960) were not able to support the
hypothesis that aspects of the body image are projected
when a subject is requested to draw a human figure. Scores
on the Jourard Body Cathexis Scale were compared with sub
jects' figure drawings. A lack of meaningful relationship
between these two measures was evidenced (14).
Fisher's final evaluation of the empirical validity
for the human figure drawing method is guarded but opti
mistic. Difficulties arise from both projective and non-
pro jective attempts to measure various aspects of the body
image. The projective approaches such as the Homonyms test
and the D.A.P. have the advantage of being less susceptible
to errors produced by what Fisher refers to as a "social
desirability factor" (14:21). The Body Cathexis Scale
36
appears to be affected by what the subject may feel is the
socially desirable response. The projective measures are
less influenced by such potential sets. The nonprojective
measures such as the Jourard Body Cathexis Scale have the
advantage of easy administration, scoring and reliable in
terpretation with no professional training.
In response to this problem, Fisher has developed two
tests for the measurement of the body image which he feels
help to retain the advantages of objective scoring and yet
minimize the effects of social desirability sets. These
two tests are the Body Focus Questionnaire (B.F.Q.) and the
Body Distortion Questionnaire (B.D.Q.). The Body Exper
ience Questionnaire was an earlier measure which Fisher
revised and renamed the Body Distortion Questionnaire.
The B.F.Q. was designed to measure "the manner in
which an individual distributes his attention to the var
ious regions of his body" (14:326). The subject is re
quired to select from a series of paired body regions which
most clearly stands out in his mind. An example c£ such a
selection might involve a choice between the back or the
legs. The subject selects which part he is currently aware
of. He is asked to "Turn your attention upon yourself.
Concentrate on your body. Below is a list in which dif
ferent areas of your body are listed in pairs. In each
case pick the area or part which is at the moment most
37
clear in your awareness" (14:327). In this manner the sub
ject defines the way he distributes his attention toward
his body. There are 108 items on the questionnaire and
these are divided into eight scales: "Front-Back, Right-
I
Left, Heart, Stomach, Eyes, Mouth, Head, and Arms" (14:326).
These scales were formulated on the basis of clinical ob
servations and reports which suggested a relationship be
tween certain pathological attitudes and particular body
areas.
In order to determine if particular body experiences
were related to pathological disturbances in reality test
ing, Fisher developed the Body Distortion Questionnaire
(B.D.Q.). The subject responds to a total of eighty-two
body experience items. The subject responds to each item
with a "yes," "no," or "undecided." The items and var
ious categories in the questionnaire were developed from
frequently mentioned body experiences reported in psychia
tric literature. The items on the scale are grouped into
seven categories: distortions in body size (large or
small), distortions relating to loss of the body boundaries
experiences of the body as contaminated or dirty, distur
bances involving a blockage of body openings, body exper
iences relating to the skin, and body experiences of de
personalization. A total distortion score is based upon
38
the total number of "yes" and "undecided" responses. Per
centage scores are derived for each category of body dis
turbance. Test-retest reliability on both normals and hos
pitalized psychotics has been .80 or higher. This ques
tionnaire was specifically designed to see if unique kinds
of body experience were associated with disturbances in
reality testing (14) .
A number of studies dealing with various aspects of
the body image have been covered in this review of the lit
erature. It is the objective of this investigator to study
the aspect of body image which has been referred to above
as the body concept. This refers to those attitudes the
subject has about his body. It was previously demonstrated
in the above studies that there is a relationship between
the way in which an individual views his own body and the
concept he holds of himself. The relationship between the
body attitude and the self-concept has most frequently been
studied by means of the Jourard Body Cathexis Scale and the
Secord Homonym Test. The advantages and disadvantages as
sociated with the use of projective and nonprojective tests
used in the measurement of body attitude were outlined.
The relationship between the body concept and some theory
of what constitutes mental health has not been deeply re
searched. Secord and Jourard studied the relationship be
tween body anxiety, as measured from an index of the Body
39
Cathexis Scale, and psychological insecurity as measured
by the Maslow Security-Insecurity Inventory (14) . Zion in
vestigated the relationship between the self-concept as
measured by the Bell Index of Adjustment and Values, and
the body concept (14) . In his review of those studies
dealing with the body concept and the self-concept, Fisher
remarked that "Empirical work concerned with the correla
tion between body concept and self-concept has been sparse."
He concludes his review of these studies on the body con
cept by stating that "A clear demonstration of the fact
that an individual's feelings toward self and his body
overlap awaits the development of measures for both these
parameters which are minimally influenced by the social
desirability effect" (14:21).
It is the position of this investigator that additional
measures of evaluating the body concept are necessary.
Secondly, it seems that there is need for additional studies
which would help to make clear the relationship between the
body concept of an individual and his mental health. The
need to better understand the relationship between mental
health and the body concept stems from the amount of theor
etical application of body awareness techniques in the
field of psychology and counseling. Techniques which are
being used by counselors and therapists to facilitate
change in clients and patients are frequently based upon
40
the assumption that the individual's awareness and feelings
regarding his body are related to states of psychological
well-being (26,27,28).
Alexander Lowen has outlined his views on the relation
ship between the body concept and mental health. He states:
Identity is acquired in the union of self as
grounded in bodily experience. To know who
one is, an individual must be aware of what
he feels. He should know the expression on
his face, how he holds himself, and the way
he moves. A healthy person will have a pic
ture of the way in which he looks and feels
which corresponds with reality. A person ex
periences the reality of the world only through
his body. If the body is relatively unalive,
a person's impressions and responses to the
world are diminished. (26:5).
The Body Image and Some New Approaches
to Group Therapy
Since the main body of the research reported in this
study is a formulation of relationships between the body
image phenomena and outcomes of group counseling methods,
this review of the literature includes a final section on
emerging group methods.
There have been many developments in group work since
Joseph Pratt began one of the first attempts at group ther
apy. Since Pratt's work with tuberculosis patients in
1900 (44), there has arisen a wave of new group methods and
philosophies. In this short overview particular attention
will be given to what is labeled the bioenergetic approach
41
and secondly a method associated with Gestalt psychology.
During the pre-World War Two era group psychotherapy
was being developed independently by several different
physicians. E. W. Lazell published a paper entitled "The
Group Treatment of Dementia Praecox" in the Psychoanalytic
Review of 1921 (24). As early as 1909, Freud, Jung and
Ferenczi held group meetings in which they would share
their dreams and discuss the feelings they had concerning
the dreams (17) . The 1931 issue of Mental Hygiene con
tained an article by psychiatrist L. C. Marsh on work in
groups with psychotics. Trigant Burrow used psychoanalysis
in groups as early as 1925 (44).
Jacob Moreno claimed to have begun his work in group
therapy as early as 1910 and to have coined the term group
therapy in 1925 (34).
Following the close of the second world war, group
thereapy began to develop in earnest. It was pioneered by
the work of such men as Joshua Bierer, S. H. Foulkes (44),
and W. R. Bion (3). Alexander Wolff attempted to transfer
principles of individual psychoanalysis to the group set
ting. Wolff was influenced by the work of Paul Schilder
(50) .
Hendrik Ruitenbeek makes the following observation on
the underlying reasons for the rise of new approaches to
group therapy in the last decade:
42
Individual psychoanalysis alone and even in
combination with established group psychother
apy was not any more meeting the demands of
our patients. Not that the new and prospec
tive patients necessarily demanded a shortcut
to mental health but they felt that at least
in individual psychoanalysis alone they could
not communicate the kind of thing that was
bothering them. (44:25)
Group therapy and especially the new and ad
vanced experimental group therapies offer them
(patients) many more opportunities to express
themselves, to confront others, and to share
some of the concerns about life and society,
sex and love, home and profession, with others
of a like mind and similar problems. (44:32)
Both the bioenergetic approach and the gestalt methods
are derived in part from the earlier T-group approach and
its sensitivity training. Leland Bradford, Ronald Lippitt,
and Kenneth Benne established the National Training Labor
atories at Bethel, Maine. Kurt Lewin had established the
first "Training Group" to study group dynamics and human
relations. These early groups dealt with group sociology
and leadership functions (6).
In the link between Gestalt therapy and the T-
groups I think it is important to realize that
encounter groups, confrontation sessions and
marathon labs were very much a part of the T-
group approach. (4 4:141)
Carl Rogers applied the term "encounter group" to dif
ferentiate the new methods from the T-group. The objective
of the encounter group is the exploration of individual
feelings and motivation on a depth level.
The key elements in gestalt therapy are: awareness,
43
the "now," confrontation, and feeling contact (7). Fre
quently the new Gestalt and the Bioenergetic methods uti
lize nonverbal exercises. These are used to develop the
elements of trust which are essential for the establish
ment of an environment in which there is a minimum of de
fensiveness and a maximum of honest self-disclosure.
The nonverbal exercises have invaded the train
ing field with a vengeance in recent years. The
techniques employed are numerous and range from
simple exercises with a minimum of body contact
to physically intimate and emotionally reveal
ing designs of the kind most often associated
with Esalen and other institutes. The Value
of nonverbal techniques cannot be underestimated;
they derive their theoretical justification from
theories of personality that stress the possi
bility of achieving greater honesty and authen
ticity through bodily expression. (44:143)
Traditional forms of psychoanalysis have relied prin
cipally upon verbal exchanges between the patient and the
doctor. There has been a prohibition against touch in the
analytic setting. To break this prohibition, according to
Karl Menninger, is evidence of "incompetence or criminal
ruthlessness of the analyst" (33:80).
Both Wilhelm Reich and his student Alexander Lowen,
are to be considered as pioneers of the current increase in
emphasis by psychotherapists between the mind and the body
(37, 39). Reich began as an orthodox analyst but came to
place more and more stress on the importance of the mind-
body relationship. Lowen is the current, foremost exponent
and leader of the Bioenergetic school of therapy.
44
Bioenergetic therapy is an approach to the prob
lems of the human personality through the direct
involvement of the body in the psychoanalytic
process. The body's energy processes are mobil
ized through breathing and movement to facilitate
the expression of feelings, and a setting is pro
vided for the release of the repressed feelings
that become activated in the course of this mo
bilization. The physical work with the body
allows direct physical contact between patient
and therapist. (44:154)
Thus what Lowen, Peris, Schutz and others share in
common is a belief in the value of the nonverbal exercise
and its application to the therapeutic process. In the
words of Schutz
Understanding the body is central to the phil
osophy of the open encounter. Man is indeed a
unity; and the body, the mind, the feelings,
interpersonal behavior and the spirit are all
manifestations of one essence. (47:1)
Again in Lowen's terms
. . . the body is the person, the person is his
body. We have no real existence apart from our
bodies. What goes on in our minds is, basically,
a reflection of what goes on in our bodies.
(42:155)
This review of the literature has attempted to outline
1. A historical perspective for body image research.
2. An overview of the diverse research in the body
image phenomena.
3. The relationship between body image and person
ality theory.
4. The measurement of the body image phenomena.
5. The relationship between new approaches to
group therapy and the body image.
This research study is based upon the contention that
45
the body image (the constellation of attitudes a person
maintains about the way he looks and feels) is partially
determined by the nature of his interpersonal relationships.
A second equally important contention is that the group ex-
— perience is a potentially powerful interpersonal event
which can affect self-attitudes and interpersonal relation
ships .
Man is frequently pictured as alienated from his fam
ily, his culture, his society and most importantly from
himself. May not these new methods of group encounter
serve to reunite man with his feeling self, increase his
awareness of being a living creature who is capable of ef
fectively responding to the world. Perhaps some of these
new methods are more effective than others.
CHAPTER III
RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY
This research study has outlined some of the effects
of the encounter group upon selected measures of the body
image. The encounter group can be crucial for intense hu
man interaction. It can help an individual to discover how
he is viewed by others and to facilitate a self reevalua
tion .
The body image is a generic label which is herein ap
plied to the feelings and attitudes which an individual has
toward his body, the prominence of his body in his thinking
and the relationship of these attitudes to his self-concept.
In what way might an encounter group be expected to
effect some changes in the body image and self-image of a
participant? Since not all encounter groups are the same,
it is appropriate to observe the effect of several encounter
groups on specific outcome measures.
It is reasonable to assume that the variety of tech
niques and methods used by different group leaders could-
effect differential changes in the body image of the par
ticipants . The methods for conducting encounter groups and
the style of individual leaders vary widely. How these
variations in style and methodology affect the body image
46
47
of the individual is a basic question asked in this study.
There is a serious lack of previous research in the
area of encounter group methodology and the effects pro
duced by them (6). This study is an exploratory one which
attempts to accumulate some information from a very com
plex research problem. It is a beginning and not a defi
nitive exposition on the effects of various encounter group
methods. The following design and procedure was used in
the collection of data for this research.
A quasi-experimental research strategy was applied in
this study; six different treatment groups were established.
Pre and posttreatment testing sessions were conducted for
the collection of the data. A table of random numbers was
used to assign each subject to one of the six groups.
A total of twelve subjects was assigned to each of the
six groups. These subjects were randomly chosen from a
population pool of 150 adult males and females. Six leaders
for the encounter groups were selected upon the basis of
differences in their styles and encounter methodology and
philosophy. All the group leaders were graduate students
involved in group counseling learning experiences.
The different methods utilized by the six leaders in
their encounter groups constitute the independent variable.
The selected outcome measures on the body image constitute
the dependent variables.
48
The subjects involved in the research were the parents
of children enrolled in special classes for gifted or tal
ented children in the Los Angeles public school system.
The subjects were given a chance to participate in a series
of nine group sessions in which they were encouraged to
deal with the feelings or problems they might have about
themselves, their children, and their families. The ses
sions often focused upon the concerns of parents with gif
ted children. The last of the groups (treatment group
number six) was a control group. This group did not deal
with personal problems of the individuals attending the
group. They discussed social issues rather than specific
problems of the individual members. Each of the groups
retained the same leader for the nine week treatment
period.
The group leaders were selected on the basis of indi
vidual interviews. Each of the potential leaders was asked
to provide the researcher with a statement on his encounter
group approach. Final selection was based upon the differ
ences in style and methods of the leaders. The leaders
were selected from graduate students at the University of
Southern California. Each of the leaders was to utilize
different techniques in his work within his group. Roll
was taken at the beginning of each group session. If a
subject was absent more than twice he was dropped from
the group.
The six groups were conducted in the following manner.
Groups one, two and three were exposed to an approach which
utilized the methods of sensitivity training, nonverbal ex
ercises and confrontation. These groups were exposed to
encounter group styles and methods which have been pre
viously identified with both the Gestalt and the Bioener-
getic approaches to encounter group work. The leaders of
these three separate groups encouraged members to work in
the "now," become more in touch with the way they look and
feel, increase the directness and honesty of their communi
cation with each other, and to experiment with nonverbal
exercises which would increase their awareness of them
selves. Group number one listened to a series of taped
encounter group exercises designed to achieve the above ob
jectives. Groups two and three did not listen to the
tapes.
This tape provides specific exercises which have been
outlined by Alexander Lowen, William Schutz, Betty Berzon
and other experienced group leaders (26, 47, 2). One ex
ercise was played at the beginning of each session for the
nine week period in which group number one met with its
leader. The tapes were used in conjunction with the on
going encounter activities. Exercises in trust behavior,
sensory awareness, relaxation, breathing and the expression
of hostility were played for group number one. The leaders
50
of groups two and three utilized these same approaches but
they did not listen to the professionally prepared tapes.
The remaining three groups experienced a different
format in their encounter groups. Groups number four, five,
and six were led by leaders with a different set of proce
dures and a different orientation toward group counseling.
These group leaders did not utilize the taped encounter
group exercises, nonverbal exercises, sensory awareness
methods or similar devices associated with the Gestalt or
Bioenergetic schools of group work-. Groups four and five
were conducted within the framework of a verbal exchange
by leaders who preferred a nondirective style in group
work. The leaders of these groups did not press the group
members for interpersonal confrontation on a "now" basis.
They allowed the group to discuss in depth personal, his
torical situations and problems not limited to the immediate
group situation. Physical contact between the group members
was not encouraged, though not prohibited. Group number
six was not operated as an encounter group but as a group
for discussion. This discussion group did not operate on a
basis of personal involvement. Its time was devoted to the
discussion of general problems on a social scale, a proce
dure which was not designed to involve the group member on
an individual, personal level of any depth. Group number
six completed the same pre and posttests as did the other
51
five groups.
The following instruments together with the procedure
employed for data collection were given to all subjects in
volved in the research study. At the beginning of the data
collection session, it was explained that the cooperation
of the subjects in the research would help the author better
understand some of the effects of encounter groups and
their impact upon individuals. All test materials were
answered anonymously by the subjects. A code was used
which would allow the researcher to match pre and posttest
results. Each subject was encouraged to answer all ques
tions honestly. Identifying data was requested. This in
cluded age, sex, date, group number, marital status, and an
identifying number in place of the subject's name.
After the identifying data was collected, each of the
subjects was asked to take, in the following order, each of
the research questionnaires: the Jourard-Secord Self-Cath-
exis Scale, the Jourard-Secord Body Cathexis Scale (22),
Fisher's Body Prominence Instrument (14), and the Secord
Word Homonym Test (45). The objectives, administration,
validity and reliability of each of these instruments
follows.
Secord and Jourard have devised a questionnaire which
is a measure of an individual's degree of satisfaction or
dissatisfaction with the different parts or processes of
52
the body (22) . Jourard and Secord believe that "the indi
vidual's attitudes toward his body are of crucial importance
to any comprehensive theory of personality" (22) . The Body
Cathexis Scale is a forty-five item questionnaire which
lists the various parts and functions of the human body.
To each of these items the subject is asked to respond on a
scale of one to five: (1) strong positive feelings, (2) mod
erate positive feelings, (3) no feelings one way or another,
(4) moderate negative feelings, (5) strong negative feel
ings. For example, item nun.ber two on the Body Cathexis
Scale requires the subject to rate his complexion from one
to five.
The second instrument utilized in this research was
also developed by Jourard and Secord. This is the Self-
Cathexis Scale. It is a forty-five item questionnaire which
also utilized a five-point response scale identical to the
one described above. The Self-Cathexis is a questionnaire
dealing with the attitudes the subject has about himself
and others. For example, item three on the Self-Catharxis
Scale asks the subject to rate on a scale of one to five,
"ability to express self" (Appendix , Page 84). This test
was first given to a group of college students, including
forty-five males and forty-three females, at Emory Univer
sity. The items included on these scales were taken from
53
the work of Schilder (46). The split-half reliability for
each of the measures is reported in the literature (22).
Reliability on the Body Cathexis Scale was .78 for males
and .83 for females. The split-half reliability for the
Self-Cathexis was reported as .88 males and .92 females.
There was a moderate correlation of .58 for men and .66 for
women between the Body Cathexis and the Self-Cathexis
scores (22).
The third of the instruments utilized in this research
is that referred to as the Body Prominence Test (14). This
instrument was developed as a new approach to body aware
ness by Seymour Fisher. "It is based on the frequency with
which an individual refers to his own body when a sample is
taken of what lies within his immediate awareness" (14:499).
The score is referred to as Body Prominence. The subject
is required to list on a sheet of paper twenty things which
are in his awareness at the moment. All direct or indirect
references to the body are scored on the protocol. Scoring
agreement between two scorers on a set of 59 such protocols
was 95%. Numerous data on test-retest reliability are
available. A test-retest reliability of .70 has been re
ported by Fisher on a sample of 47 college students. Re
search studies reported by Fisher provide evidence for the
construct validity of this test.
In one complex validity study with the Body Prominence
instrument the hypothesis was tested that there exists a
relationship between body awareness as measured by the Body
Prominence device and a selective' recall of body versus
nonbody words. The subjects were first given the Body Pro
minence device and then given a list of twenty words to
memorize. Ten of the words were parts of the body or its
functions; ten other words were not related to the body.
Each of the 92 subjects (college students) had one minute
to study the list. Each subject then had five minutes to
list all the words he could recall. The score was- the num
ber of nonbody words subtracted from the body words. Ac
cording to Fisher "A clearly significant positive relation
ship was discerned between the Body Prominence score and
the inclination to recall more body than nonbody words. The
greater the subject's awareness of his body the more he
displayed selective superior recall for words with body
meaning. "It was believed that the results provided indi
rect evidence that the Body Prominence score does tap a
body awareness dimension (14:500).
The Secord Word Homonym Test was the last of the in
struments used in this research (45) . This test was devel
oped to investigate bodily concern by means of a word asso
ciation device which would be easy to score objectively but
which would avoid some of the validity problems associated
with self-report devices. Approximately 400 homonyms were
55
collected from standard word lists. Some of the words per
tained to body parts or processes. This list of words was
administered to 185 students enrolled in a psychology class.
The subjects were instructed to write down the first word
occurring to them as they encountered each word on the list.
Subjects were allowed five seconds to respond. From this
pilot administration of the Homonym Test a final list of
175 homonyms were administered to a new sample of 200 col
lege students. A biserial correlation coefficient between
each homonym and the total bodily score was computed. The
total bodily score equaled the number of associations with
body meanings. The top 75 words with the highest biserial
correlation coefficient between each homonym and the total
score were retained for the final list. The first item,
for example, in the Word Homonym Test, is acid. The subject
is asked to list the first word he thinks of when he sees
the stimulus word. Since acid is a homonym the subject can
respond such as stomach,- which is .scored as a body refer
ence, or with a nonbody response such as ascorbic (Appendix
Page 91). The correlation for words ranged from .22 to
.70. A total of 25 neutral words were then selected and
intermixed with the 75 homonyms. Of the 75 homonyms inclu
ded in the final list, 44 are related to pain or malfunc
tioning in the body and 31 to nonpathological body aspects.
Reliability and Validity data were obtained from two sep
56
arate samples of college students. In a group of 149 col
lege students a mean of 15.81 with a range of 4 to 36 and
a reliability of .81 was produced. In a second group of
179 students a mean of 20 with a range of 4 to 44 and a
reliability of .73 was disclosed. The reliabilities are
split-half, derived from the Spearman-Brown formula. A
second set of reliability data is also available. Equiva
lent forms of the homonym test were correlated in a test-
retest administration with a one-week interval. Form A had
a split-half reliability of .69 (n=194) and Form B, .64
(n=181). "These forms administered to the same group one
week apart correlated .67 (n=161). This would argue against
a spuriously high split-half coefficient obtained resulting
from daily fluctuations in bodily attitudes."
Validation for the Word Homonym Test was established
by a search of its congruence with the results of other
tests used to measure the same variable. The tests attempt
to measure the degree of an individual's concern for his
body or bodily cathexis. The results of the homonym test
were compared with the results of the Rorschach and the
Jourard Secord Body Cathexis tests. Results obtained from
various samples on these measures of bodily cathexis and on
the Homonym Test were significantly congruent. It also was
noted that the correlation between independent scorers has
been reported at .99 on two different occasions. Secord
57
believes he had developed a reliable and valid instrument
which avoids some of the error of self-report measures, yet
unlike many other projectives can be objectively scored
(47) .
In the application of these above described instruments
to this research project it has been assumed that although
the tests were developed on subject samples composed of col
lege students that they would also have sufficient validity
in use with older, nonstudent, normal populations.
This research project utilized the above tests to mea
sure change in body image in six small groups. Following a
random assignment of subjects to one of the six groups and
a selection of the leaders and treatment procedures for
each group, a pretreatment testing session was conducted,
with the above instruments. Following nine sessions (of
two and one-half hours per session) at one week intervals,
a posttreatment testing session, using these same instru
ments, was used to collect the final data. Five of the six
groups were encounter groups. The sixth was a control-dis-
cussion group. Leaders were selected on the basis of inter
views and written statements. Group leaders were selected
and assigned at random to each of the six groups. The
leaders were selected to implement different group proce
dures and to be representative of different styles or meth
ods of encounter group work.
58
In order to respond statistically to these research
questions and the specific hypotheses, a group of statisti
cal procedures were employed. These were:
L- Analysis of variance on the pretreatment
data for each of the groups on each of the
criterion measures.
2. Analysis of variance with repeated criterion
measures on each dependent test variable.
3. Pearson correlations both pre and posttreatment
on all the test measures.
4. An analysis of all data in terms of possible
differences between men and women participants.
5. A comparison of all groups together on pre and
posttreatment data.
I
CHAPTER IV
THE RESULTS
This chapter contains the presentation and analysis
of the data obtained during the pre and posttreatment per
iods. Each of the dependent test measures on the body
image have been analyzed for each of the small groups. The
size of each of the groups reported in the analysis of the
data is ten. Subject mortality at the conclusion of the
study resulted in uneven group membership. Samples were
randomly equalized at ten. Therefore the final results are
reported for a total N of 60. There are six different
groups. Each group met for nine sessions of two-and-a-half
hours per session.
The raw score data was tabulated and the results were
punched onto IBM cards. The IBM cards were then submitted
to the computer with a series of predesigned statistical
programs. In order to obtain an analysis of variance, an
analysis of covariance, and a series of correlations be
tween outcome measures, Biomedical Computer Programs OIV,
X82, and 02D were applied to the data.
The primary questions to be answered in this analysis
of the data are as follows:
59
60
1. Do the different treatment groups signi
ficantly differ following the treatment?
2. How do the different treatments affect the
outcome measures?
3. Is there a correlation between self-concept
and the body image?
In order to respond to these questions the data was
given an analysis of variance pretreatment, repeated mea
sures operation, and multiple correlations. Additional
statistical operations include T tests and a covariance
measure. Tables for the analysis of variance on the post
treatment data and the covariance are included.
The series of tables which follow present the analysis
of variance pretreatment for each of the six groups on each
of the dependent body image variables.
TABLE 1
ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE, PRETREATMENT
JOURARD SELF-CATHEXIS
1 2
TREATMENT
3
GROUP**
4 5 6
Sample Size 10
Mean 124.30
Standard
Deviation 16.39
10
139.60
13.90
10
121.10
15.00
10
137.70
16.17
10
142.20
18.10
10
121.00
9.72
**Treatment Group Key: (1) Taped Group: listened to en
counter group taped exercises. (2) Encounter Group: per
formed nonverbal exercises. (3) Encounter Group: per
formed nonverbal exercises. (4) Nondirective: verbal ex
change only. (5) Nondirective: verbal exchange only.
(6) Discussion group: no nonverbal exercises or encounter
tapes.
61
TABLE 1 (Continued)
Sum of
Squares DF
Mean
Square F
Between Groups 4871.88 5 974.3765 4.33
Within Groups 12145.08 54 224.9091
Total 17016.9727 59
^Significance at .05 reached with 2.45
Following the analysis of pretreatment variance on
the Self-Cathexis Scale, a listing of comparisons between
the treatment groups which reached significance is pre-
, ! -
sented.
Tukey HSD: Self-Cathexis
Q=4.23 at .05 needed * signifiance
* Group 3 versus Group 5
* Group 5 versus Group 6
In the next operation a comparison of treatment
groups one, two, three was made against groups four, five
and six. Scheefe's procedure was used. Groups 1, 2, 3
are significantly different from groups 4, 5, 6.
(FQbs=18.74, F=12.25 needed).
62
TABLE 2
ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE, PRETREATMENT
JOURARD BODY-CATHEXIS
1 2
Treatment Group
3 4 5 6
Sample Size 10 10 10 10 10 10
Me an 135.70 138.80 133.50 132.30 144.20 127.90
Standard
Deviation 15.12 10.34 13.22 15.83 13.01 13.05
Sum of
Squares DF
Mean
Square F
Between Groups 1585.60 5 317.11 1. 72*
Within Groups 9914.78 54 183.60
Total 11500.38
*2.45 necessary for .05 significance
There was no significance of difference between
the groups at pretreatment on the Body Cathexis
Scale
TABLE 3
ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE, PRETREATMENT
FISHER'S BODY PROMINENCE
1
Treatment
2 3
Groups
4 5 6
Sample Size 10 10 10 10 10 10
Mean 3.50 5.00 3.20 2.70 3.70 3.60
Standard
Deviation 1.43 2.49 1.13 1.33 1.25 0.84
Sum of
Squares DF
Mean
Square F
Between Groups 29.48 5 5.89 2.59
Within Groups 122.70 54 5.27
Total 152.18
F=2.45 reaches significance
63
Computation by means of Tukey's HSD reveals a signi
ficant difference on Fisher's Body Prominence measure be
tween groups number two and group four (2 vs. 4, q=4.83;
at .05 q=4.23). Groups 1, 2, 3, versus treatment groups
4, 5, 6, were not significantly different as analyzed by
Scheffe's procedure C Fq- j : ( s = 2 .12 ; F=12.25 needed at .05).
TABLE 4
ANALYSIS OF VARIANCE, PRETREATMENT
SECORD WORD HOMONYM
Treatment Group
1 2 3 4 5 6
Sample Size 10 10 10 10 10 10
Mean 15.90 14.30 14.80 12.20 14.50 12.70
Standard
Deviation 2.18 1.94 2.20 1.61 2.91 2.05
Sum of Mean
Squares DF Square F
Between Groups 94.933 5 18.98 3.96
Within Groups 258.799 54 4.79
Total 353.7329 59
*F=2.45 needed at .05
Tukey's HSD: Group Comparisons
Q=4.23 for significance: df=6.54
Group 1 vs. Group 4 q=5.34 Group 1 vs. 6 q=4.62
Groups 1, 2, 3 were compared against groups 4, 5, 6 on
Scheffe's procedure. Groups 1, 2, 3, were significantly
different from 4, 5, 6. (Fo^s=116.68; F=12.25 needed).
Following the nine week treatment period all subjects
again were tested on the dependent test measures. These
results were treated to a repeated measures operation. The
results for each of the test measures are presented as
follows:
64
TABLE 5
SELF CATHEXIS SCALE
ANOVA: REPEATED MEASURES
*ITEMS REACHED SIGNIFICANCE
Source SS DF MS F
Between Subjects 20042.23 59
A 7457.03 5 1491.40 6.39*
S (A) 12585.20 54 233.05
Within Subjects 9342.13 60
B 2641.40 1 2641.40 30.94*
B at Ai 1844.00 1 1844.00 21.60*
B at A2 1217.00 1 1217.00 14.25*
B at A 3 125.00 1 125.00 1.46
B at Ak 125.00 1 125.00 1.46
B at A 5 1312.00 1 1312.00 15.37*
B at Ae 110.00 1 110.00 1.28
AB 2091.22 5 418.24 4.89*
B x S(A) 4609.51 54 85.36
F=4.04 with df 1.54
F=2.41 with df 5.54
LO
O
V
CL
*
SELF-CATHEXIS: MEANS OF CELLS
B
Pre Post
Ai 124.3 105.1
Az 139.6 124.0
A3
121.1 116.1
Ait 137.7 132.7
As
142.2 126.0
As 121.0 125.7
65
TABLE 6
BODY CATHEXIS SCALE
ANOVA: REPEATED MEASURES
* ITEMS REACHED SIGNIFICANCE
Source SS DF MS F
Between Subjects 12211.41 59
A 1736.66 5 347.33 1.79
S (A) 10474.75 54 193.97
Within Subjects
B 2253.33 1 2253.33 24.41*
B at Ai 1961.00 1 405.00 4.38*
B at A2 405.00 1 405.00 4.38
B at A3 510.00 1 510.00 5.52*
B at A 151.00 1 151.00 1.63
B at As 938.00 1 938.00 10.16*
B at A6 186.00 1 186.00 2.01
AB 1897.65 5 379.53 4.11*
B x S (A) 4984.61 54 92.30
*p<.05
BODY CATHEXIS: MEANS OF CELLS
B
Pre Post
Ai 135.7 115.9
A 2 138.8 129.8
A 3 133.5 123.4
Ait 132.3 126.8
As 144.2 130.5
127.9 134.0
66
TABLE 7
ANOVA: REPEATED MEASURES
*ITEMS REACHED SIGNIFICANCE
FISHER'S BODY PROMINENCE
Source SS DF MS F
Between Subjects 387.81 59
A 135.27 5 27.05 5.78*
S (A) 252.54 54
4.67
Within Subjects 309.47 60
B 175.20 1 175.20 148.91*
B at Aj^ 101.00 1 101.00 86.32*
B at A2 39.00 1 39.00 33.33*
B at A^ 84.00 1 84.00 71.79*
B at A4 19.00 1 19.00 16.23*
B at A5 8.00 1 8.00 6.83*
B at A6 1.00 1 1.00 .85
AB 70.74 5 14.14 12.02*
B X S (A) 63.53 54 1.17
*p<.05
Means of Cells
Fisher's Body Prominence
B
Pre Post
Aj 3.5 8.0
Az 5.0 7.8
A3 3.2 7.3
Ai* 2.7 4.3
A5 3.7 5.0
Ag 3.6 3.8
67
TABLE 8
SECORD'S WORD HOMONYM
ANOVA: REPEATED MEASURES
*ITEMS AT SIGNIFICANCE
Source ss‘- DF MS F
Between Subjects 1259.18 59
A 558.19 5 111.63 8.66*
S (A) 695.99 54 12.88
Within Subjects 646.96 60
B 360.53 1 360.53 109.38*
B at Ai 174.00 1 174.00 52.88*
B at A2 65 1 65.00 19.75*
B at A 3 174.00 1 174.00 52.88*
B at Ak 8 1 8.00 2.43
B at A 5 39.00 1 39.00 11.85*
B at A 6 8.00 1 8.00 2.43
AB 108.96 5 21.69 6.58*
B X S (A) 177.97 54 3.29
*p<.05
Means of Cells
Secord's Word Homonym
B
Pre Post
Ai 15.9 21.8
A2
14.3 17.9
A3
14.8 20.7
Ai* 12.2 13.5
As 14.5 17.3
A 6 12.7 14.0
68
Following the analysis of variance and repeated mea
sures treatments, the data on the dependent measures was
reviewed for possible significant correlations. The tables
below present these results.
TABLE 9
CORRELATIONS BETWEEN DEPENDENT MEASURES
ALL TREATMENT GROUPS, PRETREATMENT
Row
Column
1
Column
2
Column
3
Column
4
1 1.0000 0.2542 0.0402 0.0567
2 0.2542 1.0000 -0.0331 0.1891
3 0.0402 -0.0331 1.0000 0.0583
4 0.0567 0.1891 0.0583 1.0000
Columns and Rows Correspond to dependent test variables
1. Self-Cathexis 3. Body Prominence
2. Body Cathexis 4. Word Homonym
**Significance= at .05 for 60 Ss. 273, at .01 .354 needed
for 60 Ss.
TABLE 10
CORRELATIONS BETWEEN DEPENDENT MEASURES
ALL _ GROUPSj_ POSTTREATMENT__________________
Column Column Column Column
Row________________1___________2___________3___________4
1 1.0000 0.3387 -0.3554 -0.3061
2 0.3387* 1.0000 -0.2210 -0.0851
3 -0.3554* -0.2210 1.0000 0.3847
4 -0.3061 -0.0851 0.3847 1.0000
69
TABLE 11
CORRELATIONS BETWEEN DEPENDENT MEASURES
MALES, PRETREATMENT: N=28
*ITEMS ARE SIGNIFICANT
Row
Column
1
Column
2
Column
3
Column
4
1 1.0000 0.1679 0.0495 0.1176
2 0.1679 1.0000 -0.1113 0.1819
3 0.0495 -0.1113 1.0000 -0.2083
4. 0.1176 0.1819 -0.0018 1.0000
*For 28Ss: .374 needed at .05, .478 needed at .01.
No significance reached in pre-treatment males.
TABLE 12
CORRELATIONS BETWEEN DEPENDENT MEASURES
MALES, POSTTREATMENT: N=28
*ITEMS ARE SIGNIFICANT
Row
Column
1
Column
2
Column
3
Column
4
1 1.0000 0.1521 -0.3982* -0.2496
2 0.1521 1.0000 -0.0727 -0.0785
3 -0.3982* -0.0727 1.0000 0.3320
4 -0.2496
-0.0785
0.3320 1.0000
*For 28 Ss: .374 needed at .05, .478 needed at .01
**on all correlation tables columns and row correspond to
the tests administered:
1. Self-Cathexis
2. Body Cathexis
3. Body Prominence
4. Word Homonym Test
70
TABLE 13
CORRELATIONS BETWEEN DEPENDENT MEASURES
FEMALES, PRETREATMENT: N=32
*ITEMS ARE SIGNIFICANT
Row
Column
1
Column
2
Column
3
Column
4
1 1.0000 0.2881 0.0511 0.0164
2 0.2881 1.0000 0.0412 0.2611
3 0.0511 0.0412 1.0000 0.2290
4 0 .0164 0.2611 0.2290 1.0000
TABLE 14
CORRELATIONS BETWEEN DEPENDENT MEASURES
FEMALES, POSTTREATMENT: N=32
*ITEMS ARE SIGNIFICANT
Row
Column
1
Column
2
Column
3
Column
4
1 1.0000 0.5327 -0.3373 -0.3614*
2 0.5327 1.0000 -0.3274 -0.1015
3 -0.3373 -0.3274 1.0000 0.4435*
4 -0.3614* -0.1015 0.4435* 1.0000
*for 32 Ss: .349 at .05 needed, .449 at .01 needed
71
Discussion of the Results
The purpose of this study has been to investigate the
effects of the encounter group experience upon selected
measures of the body image. The results of the study are
now reviewed in conjunction with the hypotheses previously
set forth.
Hypothesis I. There will be no significant
cnange within the six treatment groups on
any of the four dependent variables measured.
The results of the repeated measures operation for
each of the dependent variables (Tables 5, 6, 7, 8) reveal
that there was some significant change within subjects when
comparing pretreatment with posttreatment means. However,
an analysis of variance on the pretreatment data indicate
that there was significant difference between the groups at
the pretreatment phase. The one important exception to
this pretreatment difference was the Body Cathexis Scale.
There were no significant differences between groups at
pretreatment on this measure. Significant F ratios were
found within subjects on each of the test measures for
groups one, two and three. These are the treatment groups
which performed the nonverbal exercises. The changes were
in the expected direction and indicate an increase in body
awareness and satisfaction. Groups four, five and six did
not perform these exercises.
72
Hypothesis II. When compared against each
other, none of the six treatment groups will
be significantly different from one another
following treatment.
The results indicate that treatment group one, the
group which listened to the tape, did change more than any
of the other five groups. The results also indicate that
on a comparison of pre and posttreatment means, treatment
group five was significantly different on each of the test
measures. However, this group had scores which were also
consistently higher on the test variables. Thus this ap
parent significance of difference following treatment may
be the result of a base line phenomena. A leveling or re
gression to the mean may have occurred in group five which
contributes to the appearance of a significant change.
There is a sufficient amount of evidence on the repeated
measures data to indicate that groups one, two and three
demonstrate with probability more change in the expected
direction than do groups four, five and six. Lower cell
means on the Body Cathexis, Self-Cathexis and Body Promin
ence indicate more body awareness and satisfaction with the
self. An increase in cell means for the Word Homonym test
indicates more concern with the body at the unconscious
level.
In summation then, there are significant F ratios on
the repeated measures operation between subjects for each
of the four tests except the Body Cathexis Scale. When
73
comparing groups it appears with probability that groups
one, two and three show more change in the expected direc
tion when compared with treatment groups four, five and six.
Hypothesis III. There is no degree of signi
ficant relationship between the Body Cathexis
Scale and the Self-Cathexis Scale.
Correlation matrices are present in Tables 9, 10, 11,
12, 13, and 14. The correlations are presented for each of
the four test measures with each other. This procedure was
completed for pre and post data on all subjects combined,
males and females separately. There was no significant cor
relation between these test measures pretreatment. Post
treatment correlations for test one with test two and for
test one with test three did reach significance.
At posttreatment, the data on male subjects indicate
that tests one and three reached a significant correlation.
On the female sample at posttreatment, there were signifi
cant correlations between test one and four and tests three
and four. There were no positive correlations between the
Body Cathexis and the Self-Cathexis which reached signifi
cance for the entire sample. Thus Hypothesis III is not re
jected. This is a negative finding which is contrary to
that expected. The nature of the relationship between the
self-concept and body attitudes is not clear. Previous re
search, as reported in Chapter II, indicated a slight posi
tive correlation between the Body Cathexis and the Self-
74
Cathexis. Each of the four dependent tests used to measure
change in the subjects in this study was selected to tap a
different area of body awareness and body attitudes.
There are some specific limitations on the inferences
which can be drawn for the data reported in this study. The
analysis of variance on the pretreatment data reveals that
the treatment groups were not all equal before the treat
ment began. Secondly the sample size of the treatment
groups is small. In addition to these factors, it is dif
ficult to estimate how the leader's personality and the
groups' expectation for change may have influenced the raw
score data.
On the positive side, it does appear that the en
counter groups did change in the expected direction more
than the group which functioned as a discussion group.
There is also a sufficient amount of data to suggest that
the groups which performed the nonverbal awareness exer
cises did change more on the body image measures than those
groups which did not perform the exercises. Obviously this
study needs replication with a larger sample size, use of
unobtrusive measures, and a careful screening of the
leaders for variable personality factors which might con
found the treatment data. A rotation of the group leaders
could be applied to balance the effects of the leader's
personality upon the treatment procedures.
CHAPTER V
SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
The problem under consideration in this research
study is the relationship between encounter group exper
iences, procedures, and methodology, and changes on selec
ted measures of the body image. The body image has been
described as the formation of the attitudes and feelings an
individual develops regarding the way his body looks and
feels. It has been suggested that the body image attitudes
and degree of awareness are conditioned by the types of so
cial interaction which persons develop as they mature. Thus
the body image has been researched as a fluid concept which
might be subject to the effects of an intensive group en
counter experience. Therefore the task of this research
was to examine the ways in which the encounter group might
affect the image a person holds of himself and of his body.
It was proposed that there are encounter group methods
which utilize sensory awareness techniques and nonverbal
exercises in communication which might differentially af
fect a person's image of himself and his body. A comparison
of the effects produced by different encounter group acti
vities was achieved.
75
76
In order to resolve some of the problems and ques
tions posed by this research, a test-retest research de
sign was established. A total of six encounter groups with
twelve members each were established. Sampling was random.
Subject mortality reduced the groups to ten members each.
The population was composed of adult male and female par
ents of gifted children enrolled in the Los Angeles City
public school system. The encounter groups met once per
week for nine sessions, for a period of two-and-a-half
hours per session. Six different leaders were selected to
lead each of the encounter groups. These leaders were se
lected from available graduate students at the University
of Southern California, Department of Counselor Education.
Four different tests were given to the members of
each group. Subjects were assigned to groups by means of
a table of random numbers. Testing was conducted at the
beginning and at the end of the nine-week treatment period.
Roll was taken by each group leader and no subject could
continue in the group after two consecutive absences.
The four selected measures of the body image included:
1. Jourard Self-Cathexis Scale
2. Jourard Body Cathexis Scale
3. The Body Prominence Protocol
4. The Word Homonym Test
The statistical procedures used to analyze the data
77
collected from this procedure were:
1. Analysis of variance on the pretreatment data.
2. Analysis of variance with repeated measures
operation for each dependent variable measure.
3. Correlations among all of the four body image
measures.
The findings achieved after the data were collected
and analyzed allow for the following conclusions to be
drawn:
1. The scores of the subjects which received the
encounter group nonverbal exercises did change
significantly following the treatment period.
2. It appears that those groups which did receive
the nonverbal exercises did most consistently
change in the expected direction as compared
to those groups which received only verbal
interaction.
3. There was the least amount of change in the
discussion group on the body image variables.
4. There did not appear a strong significant corre
lation between the body image measures and the
Self-Cathexis Scale.
5. The treatment group which listened to the en
counter group exercises on tape did show the
most change toward an increase in bodyaware-
ness and satisfaction when compared to the
other treatment groups. Treatment groups two
and three performed the same exercises but did
not listen to the professional tape. Whatever
the encounter methods applied, they seem to
have a greater effect on the performance of the
subjects on the dependent measures than does the
straight discussion group. It was anticipated
that a positive correlation of a significant
level would appear between the Self-Cathexis
Scale and the Body Cathexis Scale. Such a
correlation did not appear. There was a
78
positive correlation between these measures
but it failed to reach statistical signifi
cance. This may perhaps be the result of a
rather small sample size.
These conclusions must be accompanied by a series of
necessary qualifications and limitations. The degree of
certainty with which one may conclude that the groups were
changed by the encounter experience is in need of qualifi
cation. The analysis of pretreatment data reveals that the
groups were not statistically similar on all the body image
variables at the beginning of the study. Secondly it is
not possible to be certain how much of the change in the
performance of a given group resulted strictly from the
treatment procedure as opposed to the impact of the given
leader's personality.
The instrumentation could be improved in a replication
by inclusion of unobtrusive measurement procedures and/or
the use of projectives which are not normally subject to
the effects of social desirability responses.
This has been an exploratory study on the effects of
the encounter group upon selected aspects of the body image
and the self-concept. Future studies on larger samples
might deliminate more carefully, by means of improved samp
ling and testing, the nature of the relationship between
the self-concept and the body image. Specific treatment
procedures do appear to result in particular changes in the
encounter group. Exercises which stress the importance of
79
bodily awareness and feeling do tend to register change on
scales designed to be sensitive to body attitudes. However
a better understanding of the relationship between the
self-concept and body attitudes is necessary.
APPENDIX
TESTS AND INSTRUCTIONS
80
SAMPLE DATA FORM
Basic Information
Initials: First, middle, last name__________________
Six: Male/Female (circle)
Age last birthday_________
Name of Group Leader___________________________
Purpose of these questions
Your cooperation on this research will help us
better understand how effective encounter groups can
be. Your efforts will help us to understand how
people may or may not change as a result of an en
counter group experience. The above basic informa
tion is needed only for statistical tabulation of
the results. It is confidential and none of this
information will be used for any purpose other than
research.
82
Age__________
male/female
Today’s date
THE JOURARD-SECORD SCALE
Instructions: On this page there are listed a number of
things characteristic of yourself or related to you. Con
sider each item listed below and encircle the number which
best represents your feelings according to the following
scale:
1. Have strong positive feelings
2. Have moderate positive feelings
3. Have no feeling one way or another
4. Have moderate negative feelings
5. Have strong negative feelings
1. first name 1 2 3 4 5
2. morals 1 2 3 4 5
3. ability to express self 1 2 3 4 5
4. taste in clothes 1 2 3 4 5
5. sense of duty 1 2 3 4 5
6. sophistication 1 2 3 4 5
7. self-understanding 1 2 3 4 5
8. life goals 1 2 3 4 5
9. artistic talents 1 2 3 4 5
10. tolerance 1 2 3 4 5
11. moods 1 2 3 4 5
12. general knowledge 1 2 3 4 5
13. imagination 1 2 3 4 5
14. popularity 1 2 3 4 5
15. self-confidence 1 2 3 4 5
16. ability to express sympathy 1 2 3 4 5
83
17. emotional control 1 2 3 4 5
18. self-consciousness 1 2 3 4 5
19. generosity 1 2 3 4 5
20. ability to accept criticism 1 2 3 4 5
21. thoughts 1 2 3 4 5
22. artistic and literary taste 1 2 3 4 5
23.memory 1 2 3 4 5
24. thriftiness 1 2 3 4 5
25. personality 1 2 3 4 5
26. self-respect 1 2 3 4 5
27. ability to concentrate 1 2 3 4 5
28. ability to take orders 1 2 3 4 5
29. fears 1 2 3 4 5
30. capacity for work 1 2 3 4 5
31. conscientiousness 1 2 3 4 5
32. ability to meet people 1 2 3 4 5
33. self-discipline 1 2 3 4 5
34. suggestibility 1 2 3 4 5
35. neatness 1 2 3 4 5
36. vocabulary 1 2 3 4 5
37. procrastination 1 2 3 4 5
38. will power 1 2 3 4 5
39. self-assertiveness 1 2 3 4 5
40. ability to make decisions 1 2 3 4 5
41. dreams 1 2 3 4 5
f t
84
42. sensitivity to opinions of others 1 2 3 4 5
43. ability to lead 1 2 3 4 5
44. last name 1 2 3 4 5
45. impulses 1 2 3 4 5
46. manners 1 2 3 4 5
47. handwriting 1 2 3 4 5
48. intelligence level 1 2 3 4 5
49. athletic skills 1 2 3 4 5
50. happiness 1 2 3 4 5
51. creativeness 1 2 3 4 5
52. love life 1 2 3 4 5
53. strength of conviction 1 2 3 4 5
54. conscience 1 2 3 4 5
55. skill with hands 1 2 3 4 5
85
age__________
male/female
today’s date
The Jourard Secord Scale
Instructions: On this page there are listed a number of
things characteristic of yourself or related to you. Con
sider each item listed below and encircle the number which
best represents your feelings according to the following
scale:
1. Have strong positive feelings
2. Have moderate positive feelings
3. Have no feeling one way or another
4. Have moderate negative feelings
5. Have strong negative feelings
1. hair 1 2 3 4 5
2. facial complexion 1 2 3 4 5
3. appetite 1 2 3 4 5
4. hands 1 2 3 4 5
5. distribution of hair over body 1 2 3 4 5
6. nose 1 2 3 4 5
7. fingers 1 2 3 4 5
8. elimination 1 2 3 4 5
9. wrists 1 2 3 4 5
10. breathing 1 2 3 4 5
11. waist 1 2 3 4 5
12. energy level 1 2 3 4 5
13. back 1 2 3 4 5
14. ears 1 2 3 4 5
15. chin 1 2 3 4 5
16. exercise 1 2 3 4 5
86
17. ankles 1 2 3 4 5
18. neck 1 2 3 4 5
19. shape of head 1 2 3 4 5
20. body build 1 2 3 4 5
21. profile 1 2 3 4 5
22. height 1 2 3 4 5
23. age 1 2 3 4 5
24. width of shoulders 1 2 3 4 5
25. arms 1 2 3 4 5
26. chest 1 2 3 4 5
27. eyes 1 2 3 4 5
28. digestion 1 2 3 4 5
29. hips 1 2 3 4 5
30. skin texture 1 2 3 4 5
31. lips 1 2 3 4 5
32. legs 1 2 3 4 5
33. teeth 1 2 3 4 5
34. forehead 1 2 3 4 5
35. feet 1 2 3 4 5
36. sleep 1 2 3 4 5
37. voice 1 2 3 4 5
38. health 1 2 3 4 5
39. sex activities 1 2 3 4 5
40. knees 1 2 3 4 5
41. posture 1 2 3 4 5
87
42. face 1 2 3 4 5
43. weight 1 2 3 4 5
44. sex (male or female) 1 2 3 4 5
45. back view of the head 1 2 3 4 5
46. trunk 1 2 3 4 5
88
age_______
male/female
today’s date
FISHER's TEST
Instructions; You are requested to list on this sheet of
paper 20 things that you are aware of or conscious of right
now. You may use several words in each description.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6 .
7. .....
8 .
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
89
Instructions: There are a number of words listed on this
page. Look at each word and then print, in the space next
to it, the first word you think of^ You have a maximum of
five seconds to look at each word before responding. Take
no longer than five seconds. Then respond.
The Secord Test
acid function probe strip
actor gag pump stump
acute gall quack swell
arch game rain sweet
attack gas rash system
back glassy rat tablet
bark graft red tan
bare index regular tape
barn lamp run tar
beat layer scarlet temperature
blotch light scrape tender
circulate limb side tent
colon lining sing tissue
collie middle sling treat
condition mole smart trench
confine nail smear trunk
contact nap socket trail
continue navel soup twist
contract ooze spotted vessel
cris is orchard spurt visit
digit organ spread vote
enlarged pair stain vogue
extract part stay waist
fiber patient still win
fish prize stitch
wrench
BIBLIOGRAPHY
90
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25. Learner, M. S. "The Relationship of Certain Aspects
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Creator Wheeler, William Franklin (author)

Core Title Effects Of Encounter Group Methods Upon Selected Measures Of The Body Image

Degree Doctor of Philosophy

Degree Program Education

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag education, educational psychology,OAI-PMH Harvest

Language English

Contributor Digitized by ProQuest (provenance)

Advisor Schrader, Don R. (committee chair), Magary, James F. (committee member), Marston, Albert R. (committee member)

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c18-559171

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