Hogan, Laura, authorConner, Bradley, advisorChavez, Ernest, committee memberFaw, Meara, committee memberFisher, Gwenith, committee member2025-09-012025-09-012025https://hdl.handle.net/10217/241916https://doi.org/10.25675/3.02236Exercise is known to be a healthy behavior, supporting physiological, psychological, and socioemotional health. However, for some individuals, particularly those who strongly identify as "exercisers," exercise may become disordered, motivated by individuals' internalization of sociocultural ideals and perfectionistic tendencies. The goal of this study was to use structural equation modeling to explore the relations between exercise identity, exercise motivation, sociocultural influences on exercise and body image, and psychosocial outcomes. Data were collected from two samples, college students and non-college adults, who engaged in exercise regularly. Several latent variable models were tested to assess the relations between body image, body and exercise-specific co-rumination, perceived sociocultural pressure, exercise identity centrality, intuitive exercise, and social and emotional health. Key findings indicated that exercise that is motivated by diet-culture beliefs is associated with increased experiences of depression, anxiety, and stress. Additionally, intuitive exercise partially mediated the relation between exercise identity and mental wellbeing. Finally, body image distress and body and exercise co-rumination significantly mediated the influence of sociocultural pressure on exercise motivation. Results supported a nuanced perspective of exercise behavior, emphasizing the importance of identity centrality and sociocultural messaging in determining whether exercise contributes to either health or harm. Implications for intervention and future research in clinical, community, and educational settings are discussed.born digitaldoctoral dissertationsengCopyright and other restrictions may apply. User is responsible for compliance with all applicable laws. For information about copyright law, please see https://libguides.colostate.edu/copyright.Text