Jennifer S Mills

Faculty & School/Dept.

Faculty of Health - Department of Psychology

Degrees

PhD - 2001
University of Toronto

MA - 1996
University of Toronto

BSc - 1995
University of Toronto

Selected Publications

• Smith, O. E., Mills, J. S., & Samson, L. (2024). Out of the loop: Taking a one-week break from social media leads to better self-esteem and body image among young women. Body Image, 49, 101715. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2024.101715


• Hogue, J., Minister, C., Samson, L., Campbell, G., & Mills, J.S. (2023). Young women's dialectical responses to fitspiration and thinspiration: A qualitative study. Eating Behaviors, 50, 101758. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eatbeh.2023.101758


•  Mills, J. S., Poulin, L. E., & Kirsh, G. (2023). Comparison of MI-oriented versus CBT-oriented adjunctive treatments: impacts on therapeutic alliance and patient engagement during hospital treatment for an eating disorder. Journal of Eating Disorders, 11(1), 98. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40337-023-00818-8


• Mills, J.S., Manea, A., & McCreary, D. (2023). Precarious manhood manifests as drive for muscularity. Sex Roles, 88(11-12), 1-9. DOI: 10.1007/s11199-023-01369-7


• Polivy, J., Herman, C.P., & Mills, J.S. (2023). Assessment of restrained eating and dieting. In A.M. Meule (Ed.), Assessment of Eating Behaviour (pp. 15-26). Hogrefe. DOI: 10.1027/00616-000


• Levin, R., Mills, J.S., McComb, S.E., & Rawana, J. (2023). Examining orthorexia nervosa: Using latent profile analysis to explore potential diagnostic classification and subtypes in a non-clinical sample. Appetite, 181, 106398. DOI: 10.1016/j.appet.2022.106398


• Mills, J.S., Minister, C., & Samson, L. (2022). Enriching sociocultural perspectives on the effects of idealized body norms: Integrating shame, positive body image, and self-compassion. Frontiers in Psychology. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.983534.


• McComb, S.E., & Mills, J.S. (2022). Eating and body image characteristics of those who aspire to the slim-thick, thin, or fit ideal and their impact on state body image. Body Image, 42, 375-384. DOI: 10.1016/j.bodyim.2022.07.017.


• Gobin, K.C., Mills, J.S., & McComb, S.E. (2022). Testing a self-compassion micro-intervention before appearance-based social media use Implications for body image. Body Image, 40, 200-206.


• McComb, S.E., & Mills, J.S. (2022). The effect of physical appearance perfectionism and social comparison to thin-, slim-thick-, and fit-ideal Instagram imagery on young women’s body image. Body Image, 40, 165-175.


• Gobin, K.C., Mills, J.S., & McComb, S.E. (2021). The effects of COVID-19 lockdown on eating, body image, and social media habits among women with and without symptoms of orthorexia nervosa. Frontiers in Psychology, Social and Personality Psychology, 12.


• Gobin, K., Mills, J.S., & Katz, J. (2021). Psychotherapeutic interventions for Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus. In Psychology and Patho-physiological Outcomes of Eating, A. Takada (Ed.), InTech. DOI: 10.5772/intechopen.97653.


• McComb, S.E., Gobin, K., & Mills, J.S. (2021). The effects of self-disclaimer Instagram captions on young women's mood and body image: The moderating effect of participants’ own photo manipulation practices. Body Image, 38, 251-261. DOI: 10.1016/j.bodyim.2021.04.011.


• McComb, S.E., & Mills, J.S. (2021). Young women’s body image following upwards comparison to Instagram models: The role of physical appearance perfectionism and cognitive emotion regulation. Body Image, 38, 49-62. DOI: 10.1016/j.bodyim.2021.03.012

 

Supervision

Currently available to supervise graduate students: Yes

Currently taking on work-study students, Graduate Assistants or Volunteers: No

Available to supervise undergraduate thesis projects: No

Current Research

My research interests are in the area of body image and eating disorders. I study malleable risk factors for disordered eating, including body dissatisfaction and dieting. I am particularly interested in the factors that influence how women perceive their bodies and the psychological consequences of social media use. Other recent research projects include the study of women's reactions to eating disorder prevention messages, motivational interviewing as an adjunct to hospital treatment of eating disorders, and the nature and risk factors of "orthorexia nervosa" or a pathological obsession with clean or healthy eating.