The mediating role of self-objectification, self-disgust, and selfcompassion in the relationship between sexual objectification and dissociation

In interpersonal interactions, women can be subjected to sexual objectification, discrimination, and sexual, verbal, or physical harassment. Sexual objectification experiences in everyday life have a hidden trauma function even though there is no overt trauma present. As women frequently encounter such experiences, psychological well-being is negatively affected, and some effects of trauma, such as dissociative experiences, are regularly observed. The purpose of this study was to examine the mediating roles of adult women’s experiences of self-objectification, self-disgust, and self-compassion experiences on their interpersonal sexual objectification-related dissociative experiences. 391 women between the ages of 19 and 72 participated in the study. Sociodemographic form, Interpersonal Sexual Objectification Scale, Objectified Body Consciousness Scale, Self-Disgust Scale – Revised Version, and SelfCompassion Scale Short Form were used. According to the results, it was seen that interpersonal sexual objectification experiences predicted dissociation. This relationship is mediated by body shame (a subscale of the objectified body consciousness scale), self-disgust, and self-compassion. However, body surveillance, another subscale of objectified body consciousness, did not play a mediating role in this relationship. This study showed that high body shame, high self-disgust, and low selfcompassion play a statistically significant role in high dissociative experiences associated with sexual objectification in interpersonal relationships.