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Embodiment and psychological health in adolescence. 2. Embodiment profiles and their association with psychological health problems among young adolescents

Lundh, Lars-Gunnar LU ; Foster, Lo LU and Daukantaité, Daiva LU (2025) In Journal for Person-Oriented Research 11(1). p.25-35
Abstract (Swedish)
Background Several researchers have argued that disturbances in embodiment play an important role in the development of psychological health problems among adolescents. The purpose of the present study was to use the 12-item Embodiment Scale (ES-12), with its three subscales Harmonious Body (HB), Disharmonious Body (DB), and Body for Others (BO), (1) to identify subgroups of adolescents with different profiles on the ES-12 scales, and (2) to see how these profiles are associated with patterns of psychological health problems.
Methods The participants were 530 adolescents with a mean age of 14 years (SD = 0.89), who filled out the ES-12 and measures of disordered eating, non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI), anxiety, and depression.... (More)
Background Several researchers have argued that disturbances in embodiment play an important role in the development of psychological health problems among adolescents. The purpose of the present study was to use the 12-item Embodiment Scale (ES-12), with its three subscales Harmonious Body (HB), Disharmonious Body (DB), and Body for Others (BO), (1) to identify subgroups of adolescents with different profiles on the ES-12 scales, and (2) to see how these profiles are associated with patterns of psychological health problems.
Methods The participants were 530 adolescents with a mean age of 14 years (SD = 0.89), who filled out the ES-12 and measures of disordered eating, non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI), anxiety, and depression. Hierarchical cluster analysis was used to divide the sample into (1) subgroups with different profiles of HB, DB and BO and (2) subgroups with different psychological health profiles. Cross-tabulation was used to study associations between different embodiment profiles and different patterns of psychological health problems.
Results Five different profiles of embodiment were identified: Strong Embodiment, Average Embodiment, Weak Embodiment, Body for Others, and Low Body Harmony. Five different psychological health profiles were identified: Multiple Problems, Multiple Problems without NSSI, Disordered Eating Only, Average Psychological Health, and a Healthy profile. Cross-tabulation showed that individuals with a Strong Embodiment profile were over-represented among adolescents in the Healthy cluster, and that individuals with the Weak Embodiment profile were over-represented in both Multiple Problems clusters. Individuals with a Body for Others profile were over-represented among adolescents with a Disordered Eating Only profile but not among adolescents with Multiple Problems profiles.
Conclusions These findings align with theoretical frameworks which emphasize the importance of embodiment for the understanding of psychological health problems. At the same time, the results go against theories that attribute a central role to high levels of experienced Body for Others for the development of psychological health problems.
Keywords: embodiment; Embodiment Scale-12 (ES-12); embodiment profiles; adolescence; disordered eating, non-suicidal self-injury; depression; anxiety; cluster analysis, Body for Others
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author
; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
Journal for Person-Oriented Research
volume
11
issue
1
pages
25 - 35
publisher
Lundh Research Foundation
external identifiers
  • scopus:105002449824
  • pmid:40207191
ISSN
2002-0244
DOI
10.17505/jpor.2025.27578
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
dc55fa05-9d99-4e6a-962b-646501cae14a
date added to LUP
2025-04-05 08:09:37
date last changed
2025-07-08 03:00:02
@article{dc55fa05-9d99-4e6a-962b-646501cae14a,
  abstract     = {{Background Several researchers have argued that disturbances in embodiment play an important role in the development of psychological health problems among adolescents. The purpose of the present study was to use the 12-item Embodiment Scale (ES-12), with its three subscales Harmonious Body (HB), Disharmonious Body (DB), and Body for Others (BO), (1) to identify subgroups of adolescents with different profiles on the ES-12 scales, and (2) to see how these profiles are associated with patterns of psychological health problems.  <br/>Methods The participants were 530 adolescents with a mean age of 14 years (SD = 0.89), who filled out the ES-12 and measures of disordered eating, non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI), anxiety, and depression. Hierarchical cluster analysis was used to divide the sample into (1) subgroups with different profiles of HB, DB and BO and (2) subgroups with different psychological health profiles. Cross-tabulation was used to study associations between different embodiment profiles and different patterns of psychological health problems.<br/>Results Five different profiles of embodiment were identified: Strong Embodiment, Average Embodiment, Weak Embodiment, Body for Others, and Low Body Harmony. Five different psychological health profiles were identified: Multiple Problems, Multiple Problems without NSSI, Disordered Eating Only, Average Psychological Health, and a Healthy profile. Cross-tabulation showed that individuals with a Strong Embodiment profile were over-represented among adolescents in the Healthy cluster, and that individuals with the Weak Embodiment profile were over-represented in both Multiple Problems clusters. Individuals with a Body for Others profile were over-represented among adolescents with a Disordered Eating Only profile but not among adolescents with Multiple Problems profiles.<br/>Conclusions These findings align with theoretical frameworks which emphasize the importance of embodiment for the understanding of psychological health problems. At the same time, the results go against theories that attribute a central role to high levels of experienced Body for Others for the development of psychological health problems. <br/>Keywords: embodiment; Embodiment Scale-12 (ES-12); embodiment profiles; adolescence; disordered eating, non-suicidal self-injury; depression; anxiety; cluster analysis, Body for Others<br/>}},
  author       = {{Lundh, Lars-Gunnar and Foster, Lo and Daukantaité, Daiva}},
  issn         = {{2002-0244}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{04}},
  number       = {{1}},
  pages        = {{25--35}},
  publisher    = {{Lundh Research Foundation}},
  series       = {{Journal for Person-Oriented Research}},
  title        = {{Embodiment and psychological health in adolescence. 2. Embodiment profiles and their association with psychological health problems among young adolescents}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.17505/jpor.2025.27578}},
  doi          = {{10.17505/jpor.2025.27578}},
  volume       = {{11}},
  year         = {{2025}},
}