Spirituality: The Key between
Life Satisfaction and Body
Satisfaction
Jennifer L. Faulkner
&
Sara E. Harding
Life Satisfaction
 An overall enjoyable life, which meets
one’s needs and wants and fulfills a high
quality of existence.
 Implies the satisfaction of individual factors
Body Satisfaction and
Life Satisfaction
 Psychological issues related to eating and
weight can affect global aspects of wellbeing (Greeno et al, 1998).
 Entire sample of college-aged women report
relationship between body satisfaction and
self-concept (Webster & Tiggemann, 2001).
Spirituality
 “A state of being reflecting positive
feelings, behaviors, and cognitions of
relationships with oneself, others, the
transcendent and nature, that in turn provide
the individual with a sense of identity,
wholeness, satisfaction, joy, contentment,
beauty, love, respect, positive attitudes,
inner peace and harmony, and purpose and
direction in life.” –Gomez and Fisher, 2002
Spirituality and Life Satisfaction
 More spiritual life parallel to greater life
satisfaction (Kinnier et al, 2001)
 Personal spirituality reliably predicts greater
satisfaction with life and helps college
students cope with stressors (Fabricatore, 2000)
Hypothesis
High Body
Satisfaction
Low Body
Satisfaction
High Spirituality High Life
Satisfaction
Moderate Life
Satisfaction
Low Spirituality Moderate Life
Satisfaction
Low Life
Satisfaction
Method
Participants





67 women from a liberal arts college
Ages range from 18-22
52 sorority members; 15 independents
Mostly Midwestern
65 white; 2 Hispanic
Instruments
 Life Satisfaction Survey (Diener, 1993)
Likert scale 1-7
___ The conditions of my life are excellent.
___ In most ways my life is close to my ideal.
___ I am satisfied with my life.
___ So far I have gotten the important things I want in life.
___ If I could live my life over, I would change almost
nothing.
 alpha = .7802
 Eating Disorders Inventory
-subscale measuring body satisfaction
(Vohs et al, 2000)
 alpha = . 8238
 “I like the size of my hips.”
Always, Usually, Often, Sometimes, Rarely, Never
 Spiritual Well-Being Questionnaire
(Fisher, 1998)
 alpha = .9008
 Examples:
“Developing a personal relationship
with God.”
“Developing a connection with nature.”
Results
 Relationship between body satisfaction
and life satisfaction: r = .291, p = .017
 Relationship between spirituality and
life satisfaction: r = .399, p = .001
 No significant relationship between
body satisfaction and spirituality.
Analysis
High Body
Satisfaction
High Spirituality
Low Spirituality
Low Body
Satisfaction
Main Effects
 Spirituality: F = 4.55, df = 1, p = .039
 Body Satisfaction: F = 7.54, df = 1, p = .009
 No significant interaction between
spirituality and body satisfaction.
2 x 2 ANOVA
High
Spirituality
Low
Spirituality
High Body
Satisfaction
Low Body
Satisfaction
Mean = 29.54
Mean = 26.60
“Life Satisfaction”
“Life Satisfaction”
Mean = 26.50
Mean = 23.18
“Life Satisfaction”
“Life Satisfaction”
Life Satisfaction
Main Effects
30
29
28
27
26
25
24
23
22
21
20
Lo Body
Hi Body
Lo
Spirituality
Hi
Curious Findings
 Relationship between year in college and
life satisfaction: r = .326; p = .007
29
28
27
26
25
24
23
or
Se
ni
ni
or
Ju
or
e
ho
m
op
Fr
es
hm
an
22
Curious Findings
 Relationship between body satisfaction and
G.P.A.: r = .274; p = .025
Discussion
 Reviewing Research:
- Body satisfaction is a component of life
satisfaction.
- Spirituality is also a component.
 Can spirituality compensate for low body
image?
YES!
Implications
 If the effects of body satisfaction can be
offset by spirituality, then the same may be
true for other self-perceptions, and…
 Perhaps we should strive to make
spirituality a more important aspect of our
daily lives.
Future Research
 Larger, more diverse sample
 Test other self-perceptions and look for
spirituality’s effects.
 Is there really a link between body
satisfaction and G.P.A.? If so, why?
 Does age play a part in overall life
satisfaction?