Adolescent Girls' Body Dysmorphic Symptoms: A Path Analysis of Body Dysmorphic Disorder Based on Obsessive-Compulsive Symptoms, Obsessive and Metacognitive Beliefs

Body dysmorphic disorder is a type of psychiatric disorder with the major indicator of overt preoccupation with the imagined minor role in the appearance. The disorder starts in adolescence and has a high prevalence among adolescent girls. This study aimed to extend the research literature through investigating the predicting role of variables of obsessive symptoms, obsessive beliefs and metacognitive beliefs regarding body dysmorphic disorder and presenting a BDD model in adolescent girls based on the aforementioned variables. Research sampling included ( n = 263) 14- to 18-year-old adolescent girls who were selected through cluster sampling and filled out the modified version of Yale-Brown Obsessive–Compulsive Scale (Body Dysmorphic Disorder) (YBOCS-BDD), the Maudsley Obsessive–Compulsive Inventory, Obsessive Beliefs Questionnaire-44 (OBQ-44) and Metacognitive Questionnaire-30 (MCQ-30). To investigate the descriptive statistics, the indices of mean and standard deviation were analyzed, and to answer the proposed hypotheses, modeling of structural equations based on covariance was implemented. The findings indicated that in the whole population, all paths’ coefficients were statistically significant and in the order of presenting, obsessive symptoms, obsessive beliefs and metacognitive beliefs have significant positive effects on body dysmorphic disorder. Among the subscales of obsessive symptoms, the subscales of “checking” and among the subscales of obsessive and metacognitive beliefs, the subscales of “importance of thoughts” and “negative beliefs about uncontrollability and danger,” respectively, attained the highest predictive coefficients. The results of the study can be helpful in identifying new scientific ways to treat body dysmorphic disorder.