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The current study examined the psychometric properties of a Greek version of the Appearance Schemas Inventory - Revised (ASI-R). A total of 269 university female students (mean age = 25.1 years, SD = 3.81; mean height = 163cm, SD = 6.1cm; mean weight = 57.9Kg, SD = 10.78) were administered the Greek Multidimensional Body-Self Relations Questionnaire-Appearance Scales (MBSRQ-AS) and the Greek Appearance Schemas Inventory-Revised (ASI-R). A Principal Components Analysis revealed that the Greek ASI-R items significantly loaded with the original scale's two main factors. Internal consistencies of the subscales ranged from .87 to .93. One-month test-retest reliability coefficients ranged from .90 to. 95. Convergent validity was also confirmed as the Greek ASI-R subscales correlated significantly with the MBSRQ-AS. Group comparisons were also conducted comparing normal weight to overweight and obese individuals with significant differences indicating support for the sensitivity of the scale.
The concept of body image refers to one's perceptions, feelings and thoughts towards one's body and particularly its appearance (Cash & Labarge, 1996; Cash, Melnyk & Hrabosky, 2004; Cash, Morrow, Hrabosky & Perry, 2004). The development of appearance-related self- schemas appears to be a critical issue in the manifestation of body-image dissatisfaction and potentially disordered eating. According to Markus (1977), self-schemas are defined as the 'cognitive structures used to process self-related information' (Cash, Melnyk & Hrabosky, 2004; p. 306), and are derived from one's personal and social experiences (Cash & Labarge, 1996; Labarge, Cash & Brown, 1998). Particularly, appearance-related schemas reflect the importance of appearance to an individuaPs sense of self (Cash, 2011). Appearance-schematic persons place a great importance on their physical appearance and they evaluate themselves based on how they look (Labarge, Cash & Brown, 1998; Young, 2007).
The Appearance Schemas Inventory (ASI) measures 'dysfunctional schematic investment in appearance' (Rusticus & Hubley, 2005; p. 2) and particularly assesses certain beliefs about the importance, impact and meaning of appearance in one's life (Cash, 2003). The original version was a 14-item tool developed by Cash and Labarge (1996), but following some amendments, the end result was a longer, 20-item version of the Appearance Schemas Inventory-Revised (ASI-R). The 20-item measure is composed of two subscales: Self-Evaluative Salience and Motivational Salience. Self-Evaluative salience reflects how people believe that then- physical appearance determines their own self-worth....