Developing a Digital Adaptation of the Body Advocacy Movement

The Body Advocacy Movement (BAM), a cognitive-dissonance-based eating disorder prevention program, has the potential to be adapted into a digital format to increase accessibility and address the critical gap in existing digital eating disorder interventions. College students with elevated eating disorder psychopathology and past BAM participants shared their experiences with fatphobia and anti-fat bias, as well as their thoughts on digitizing BAM. The findings suggest that a digital adaptation of BAM could provide accessible, action-oriented content focused on anti-fat bias and fatphobia, addressing unmet needs in ED prevention.

Key Takeaways:

• The Body Advocacy Movement (BAM) is an in-person, peer-led, cognitive-dissonance-based eating disorder prevention program.
• A digital adaptation of BAM has the potential to increase accessibility and address the critical gap in existing digital eating disorder interventions.
• College students with elevated eating disorder psychopathology and past BAM participants expressed strong interest in a hybrid digital format that combines synchronous and asynchronous components.
• Participants described pervasive and harmful experiences of anti-fat bias and fatphobia, underscoring a gap in care that a digital adaptation of BAM could address.
• Incorporating synchronous social connection within a flexible, interactive framework may promote engagement and impact.
• A critical next step will involve designing and pilot testing this digital adaptation of BAM to evaluate its feasibility and effectiveness.
• The digital adaptation of BAM aims to provide accessible, action-oriented content focused on anti-fat bias and fatphobia, addressing unmet needs in ED prevention.

Statistics:

• 17 college students with elevated eating disorder psychopathology participated in the study.
• 14 past BAM participants shared their experiences with BAM and thoughts on digitizing BAM.
• 31 participants were interviewed in total, including 17 college students with elevated ED psychopathology and 14 past BAM participants.

Sources:

• Snively, K. S., Flett, L., Jooanes, A., et al. (2025). Digital adaptation of the body advocacy movement: A human-centered design approach. osf.io: osf.io/preprints/psyarxiv/kwxfu_v3/