Relationship between the ideal woman model, self-figure drawing, and disordered eating among jewish ultra-orthodox women and national religious women

Background: We investigated the correlation between eating-related pathology and the Superwoman ideal among ultra-Orthodox (Haredi) and National-Religious women in Israel using self-figure drawings and related narratives. Method: A sample of 55 women filled out self-report eating attitudes questionnaire (EAT-26), the Superwoman Ideal questionnaire, and a self-drawing followed by a narrative. Results: No significant difference in eating pathology was found between the ultra-Orthodox and National-Religious women. A gap was found between the self-drawings and the narratives, which was greater among the ultra-Orthodox women. Exposed body parts were more significant than sexual signs, which are almost completely covered in these societies. Conclusion: There was no significant difference in the eating disorders’ level among ultra-Orthodox and National-Religious women. The percentage of risk of developing eating problems was similar to that of the secular population. The self-drawings with narratives was found to be an effective tool for researching these societies.