CONFLICT, INTEGRATION AND AWARENESS OF THE BODY: FINDINGS AND IMPLICATIONS IN FUTURE RESEARCH QUESTIONS

Abstract

The body is a great source of both trepidation and assurance; it can bolster preexisting maladaptive behaviors and deep-rooted anxieties or it can augment self-esteem and life affirmation. This paper reviews a large body of research based on terror management theory, somatic awareness, and body self-esteem, in the attempt to recognize the interconnectivities that highlight both the battle between and possible incorporation of the body into an individual’s identity. This body of work was evaluated to suggest how future research might achieve a more comprehensive and specified depiction of body integration into the conceptual self by using varied measurements, identifying the extent to which gender and culture contribute to these views and considering how the body-self relationship relates to somatization.