Decreasing Body Dissatisfaction in Male College Athletes: A Randomized Controlled Trial of the Male Athlete Body Project

Body Dissatisfaction (BD) is associated with marked distress and often precipitates disordered eating symptomology (Milligan & Pritchard, 2006). BD in male athletes is an important area to explore, as research in this field often focuses on eating disorders in female athletes (e.g., Becker et al., 2012; Varnes et al., 2013). The current body of literature regarding male college athletes suggests that they experience pressures associated with both societal muscular ideals and sport performance (Galli et al., 2015). While there is a clear association between drive for muscularity and BD in collegiate male athletes (Galli et al., 2015), no study to date has conducted research aimed to attenuate the effect of BD in this population. The current study seeks to investigate a BD intervention for male college athletes. Participants will be randomized to an adapted version of the standardized Female Athlete Body Project (i.e., the Male Athlete Body Project) or an assessment only control condition. All participants will complete baseline and post-treatment measures of BD, negative affect, internalization of an athletic ideal, drive for muscularity, sport confidence, eating pathology, and unhealthy weight-control behaviors. Study aims are to determine if the Male Athlete Body Project intervention group reduces BD and related factors post-treatment, and to investigate whether these differences are maintained at 1-month follow up. Results will inform mental health and sport clinicians, coaches, and other personnel involved in an athlete's care about successful strategies for decreasing BD.