Level of religiosity and disordered eating psychopathology among modern-orthodox Jewish adolescent girls in Israel.

OBJECTIVE

To examine the relation between level of religiosity, grade level, self-esteem, and level of disordered eating-related psychopathology among Modem Orthodox Jewish adolescent girls in Israel.

METHOD

The sample consisted of 320 Jewish religious adolescent schoolgirls in the 9th to 12th grades of middle and high schools. The girls completed the Eating Disorder Inventory-2 (EDI-2) and the religious questionnaire based on Guttman's instrument.

RESULTS

The more religious the student, the less eating-related psychopathology was found. The youngest students (grade 9) were found to be the least religious and to have the highest eating-related psychopathology.

DISCUSSION

The results are discussed in terms of the possibility that level of religiosity might to some extent protect adolescent girls against developing body dissatisfaction and disordered eating pathology. A high level of religiosity is associated with less emphasis on the physical attractiveness of women and less pressure for their success and achievement outside the home.