THE INFLUENCE OF BODY OBJECTIFICATION AND HEALTH LOCUS CONTROL ON USING GYM SERVICES BY WOMEN

Sigitas Urbonavicius
Aira Janonyte
Vilnius University

Saule Amirebayeva Reardon
James Reardon
Monfort College of Business

ABSTRACT

The growth of attention to personal appearance and image triggers increasing use of
numerous services that typically include a combination of elements of health and appearance.
Health and fitness clubs worldwide constitute an $83 billion and over 162 million participants.
However, the motivations of using their services remain largely under-researched, especially in
relation to specific segments of consumers. This study examines the antecedents to participation in
health and fitness clubs by young women – the segment that especially highly values the
appearance aspect of these services. After analysis of applicable theoretical backgrounds, the
theories of reasoned action and planned behavior are adopted to examine this issue. The results
suggest that all the elements of body objectification have a significant positive impact on the
frequency of participation in health club services, while the effect of locus of control is not
significant.

Keywords: Body objectification, locus of control, reasoned action, health belief model