Body size preferences and sociocultural influences on attitudes towards obesity among Moroccan Sahraoui women

The purpose of this investigation was to study body size preferences and to examine the influence of sociocultural factors on obesity among 249 Moroccan Sahraoui women. Participants rated their ideal body size and the size they thought to be “healthy,” using a figural scale consisting of nine images ranging from thin to obese. They also noted which particular sociocultural influences affected their body size ratings. The results indicated that women's rating of ideal body size (4.88) was significantly larger than their rating of healthy body size (4.33). The desire to lose weight was very low even among the majority of obese women, and educational level did not affect desire to lose weight. Women not satisfied with their body size were more likely to report trying to gain weight rather than to lose it. The major factors reported to influence body size ideal were mothers, men, and traditional clothing. It is an enormous challenge for the health institutions of Morocco to prevent obesity and its complications. Prevention programs should include teenagers and key family members.     

Method of presentation and sex differences when using a revised figural drawing scale to measure body size estimation and dissatisfaction

The present study examined whether a revision of the Gardner, Jappe, and Gardner (2009) BIAS-BD figural drawing scale gave more accurate estimations of body size estimation and body dissatisfaction than a prior version. It also examined whether the order of figure presentation led to differing values for body size estimation and body dissatisfaction. The revised BIAS-BD scale included a continuous line beneath 17 figural drawings ordered in either ascending or descending size. Results were compared with previous studies using the original scale in which the 17 figural drawings were presented in a random order and, additionally, with a method using an adjustable video image by which the participants estimated their perceived body size by adjusting the width of their static image. The scale was presented to 330 undergraduate university students, including 199 women and 131 men. Overall, compared to BMIs calculated from the participants' reports of their height and weight, men and women participants gave less accurate estimations of body size using the revised scale when compared to the original BIAS-BD scale and video methodology. Participants reported significantly less body dissatisfaction than with the original scale. There was no significant difference in body size estimation when the figures were presented in ascending or descending size. Body dissatisfaction was greater for women than men, and when the figures were presented in descending order. Methodological considerations for using figural drawing scales in body image research are discussed.     

Evidence that ideal and attractive figures represent different constructs: A replication and extension of Fingeret, Gleaves, and Pearson (2004)

Figure rating scales are commonly used to measure body dissatisfaction through discrepancy indexes (e.g., difference between current and ideal body) and recent methodological work by Fingeret, Gleaves, and Pearson suggests that distinctions between referent bodies (e.g., ideal or most attractive) are unnecessary. The purpose of the current study was to replicate these findings using both male and female figure rating scales and an opposite-sex comparison group. We examined the relationship between three referent figures (Ideal, Most Attractive to the Opposite Sex, and Most Attractive) and attractiveness attributions in 365 undergraduate men (n = 164) and women (n = 201). Results suggested that referent figures were associated with different attractiveness attributions for both male and female figures, but physical characteristics differed only in male figures. The impact of referent bodies on discrepancy indexes was also explored. Considerations for future research using figure rating scales are discussed.     

Self-deprecation and estimates of body size in women.

The subject of body image in women has received considerable attention particularly with concern about its relationship to behaviours such as dieting. This study investigated the reported tendency of women to see thinness as desirable and to perceive themselves as fatter than others do. This tendency is inconsistent with the general findings on self-enhancement that show that people (including women) generally overestimate the extent to which they possess desirable characteristics. Thus, the purpose of this study was to investigate whether the tendency for women to report themselves as fatter than others perceive them is part of a general tendency to deprecate themselves on socially desirable qualities or whether this deprecation is restricted to body size. To investigate this, 29 female undergraduates in psychology participated in a study comparing own and others' perceptions of body size, attractiveness, sexiness, intelligence, and friendliness. Compared with the ratings of them given by others, women tended to make self-enhancing judgements of their attractiveness, sexiness, intelligence, and friendliness. This was not found for body size, however, for which self-ratings tended to be the same as those made by others. The failure to find self-enhancing judgements of body size is discussed in terms of the relatively unvarying standards presented to women concerning ideal body size compared to the more subjective standards used to evaluate other qualities.     

Using Amazon's Mechanical Turk website to measure accuracy of body size estimation and body dissatisfaction

This study investigated Amazon.com's website Mechanical Turk (MTurk) as a research tool for measuring body size estimation and dissatisfaction. 160 U.S. participants completed the BIAS-BD figural drawing scale and demographic questions posted on the MTurk website. The BIAS-BD consists of 17 drawings of various male and female body sizes based on anthropometric data corresponding to a range of 60% below to 140% above the average U.S. adult. Respondents selected a drawing that best reflected their current size and ideal size. Results revealed that respondents overestimated their body size by 6% and desired an ideal size 9.2% smaller than their perceived size. Findings are compared with three previous studies using the BIAS-BD scale. A general correspondence in findings between the four studies was found. We conclude that the MTurk can serve as a viable method for collecting data on the perceptual and attitudinal aspects of body image quickly and inexpensively.     

Body attitudes and eating behaviors of female clothing sales personnel

Recent research suggests that social standards for ideal female beauty are related to negative body-image and dieting among young women. We hypothesized that women who work in settings that emphasize physical appearance (women's fashion clothing sales) would have more disturbed body attitudes and eating behaviors than college women. Sales personnel (n = 21) and students (n = 25) answered questions about their occupational status, weight, and demographic characteristics, and completed the Body-esteem Scale and the Eating Disorder Inventory. Weight and scores on the two scales were similar in both groups except that sales personnel reported more dissatisfaction with their body parts on the Body dissatisfaction scale of the Eating Disorder Inventory. Among sales personnel, those who perceived their appearance to be of greater importance in their work also reported more concern about dieting and weight, as reflected on the Drive for thinness subscale of the Eating Disorder Inventory. Results are discussed with regard to situational influences on women's body attitudes and their implications for eating behaviors.     

Complexity of culture: the role of identity and context in bicultural individuals' body ideals

Culture plays an important role in shaping body image, and people from different cultures have different beliefs about what constitutes the "ideal" body type. This study examines the relationship between culture and body ideals in Asian-American and Black-American women. Results from two studies show that subjective cultural identity and situational cultural cues had different relationships with body ideals. Among Asian-American women, identification with Asian culture was related to a thinner body ideal, but exposure to Asian cultural cues (relative to American cultural cues) was related to a thicker body ideal. Among Black-American women, identification with Black culture was related to a thicker body ideal, but exposure to Black cultural cues (relative to American cultural cues) was related to a thinner body ideal. These results have theoretical and practical implications for understanding how internal and external manifestations of culture can differentially influence body image.     

Measurement of body image satisfaction using computer manipulation of a digital image

The authors investigated a method for assessing body image satisfaction based on computer manipulation of a digitized image of self using a sample of 56 female students aged 17 to 22 years. The total percentage change when re-sizing the actual image to the ideal by the computer adjustment method was significantly correlated with the figural/silhouette discrepancy method. Both of these measures were correlated significantly with body part satisfaction and body mass index but not with social physique anxiety. Although for this sample the 2 methods yielded similar results, the computer adjustment method addresses several limitations of the figural/silhouette method, such as scale coarseness and the accuracy of proportional change between figural/silhouettes. Furthermore, by using the individual's actual image, potential confounds associated with stylized figure drawings that are typically based on Caucasian physical features are removed. Finally, this method also takes into account the importance of various body parts for determining body image satisfaction.     

Body self-discrepancies and women's social physique anxiety: the moderating role of the feared body

We explored ideal, ought, and feared body image self-discrepancies as predictors of social physique anxiety within Carver, Lawrence, and Scheier's and Woodman and Hemmings' interaction frameworks. One hundred women completed actual, ideal, ought, and feared body self-discrepancy visual analogue scales, the Social Physique Anxiety Scale and the Beck Depression Inventory-II. Moderated hierarchical regression analyses indicated that the relationship between ought body fat discrepancies and social physique anxiety was moderated by proximity to the feared fat self. Specifically, the positive relationship between ought fat discrepancies and social physique anxiety was stronger when women were far from their feared body self. The results highlight the importance of considering the feared self in order to more fully understand the relationship between body image and social physique anxiety.     

Assessing postpartum depression: Evidences for the need of multiple methods

IntroductionDifferent methods and instruments are frequently used to measure postpartum depression (PPD) in research, e.g. PPD-specific scales, DSM-based diagnostic interviews and rating scales assessing general depression. However, it is unsure whether these measures would lead to the same results, e.g. in the identification of “depressed” women or in their relations to third variables.Objective(s)We compared different measures of PPD and their relations with a third variable, namely the mothers’ marital satisfaction.MethodWe recruited 65 mothers to take part in a study about the impact of PPD on the development of early family relations. Maternal PPD was assessed with multiple methods (i) a PPD-specific scale, (ii) a DSM-based diagnostic interviews and (iii) a rating scale designed to assess the severity of depressive symptoms. We assessed mothers’ marital satisfaction with the Marital Adjustment Test (MAT).ResultsResults showed weak overlap between PPD-specific scale and DSM-based diagnosis of PPD, and modest correlations between the PPD-specific scale and the general depression rating scale. Only the score on the PPD-specific scale could predict marital satisfaction.ConclusionAs we found discrepancies between different measures of PPD, we suggest being cautious in the choice of measures and using multiple methods to measure PPD in a comprehensive way.     

Threat of the thin-ideal body image and body malleability beliefs: effects on body image self-discrepancies and behavioral intentions

This study examined the effect of the threat aroused by the perception of thin-ideal images combined with beliefs about the malleability of the body on perceived/objective, ideal/objective and ought/objective body image self-discrepancies. An experimental computer program enabled women (N=82) to artificially increase or decrease the shape of their own body (previously photographed) in response to questions about their "actual", "ideal" and "ought" body self-perceptions. As predicted, results showed that women had greater body self-discrepancies when confronted with threatening thin ideals, regardless of their body mass index. The size of this trend depended on the way they were made to think of their body (malleable vs. fixed). Findings also suggested a possible relationship between body self-representations and eating behaviors or intentions. The impact of thin-ideal threats and body malleability beliefs on body perception is discussed.     

Ethnic and racial differences in body size perception and satisfaction

Body dissatisfaction in women in the United States is common. We explored how women from various racial and ethnic groups used figural stimuli by exploring differences in current and preferred silhouette, and their discrepancy. We surveyed 4023 women aged 25–45 in an online investigation. Participants were identified using a national quota-sampling procedure. Asian women chose a smaller silhouette to represent their current body size, which did not remain significant after adjusting for self-reported BMI. After controlling for BMI, African American women selected a smaller silhouette than White women to represent their current size. Both African American and women reporting “Other” race preferred larger silhouettes than White women even after controlling for BMI. The discrepancy score revealed lower body dissatisfaction among African American than White women. Understanding factors that promote body satisfaction differentially across racial and ethnic groups could become a tool in appropriately tailored interventions designed to prevent eating disorders.     

Observational couple assessment: a cross-model comparison

This study compared the clinical rating scales from the Circumplex Model (CCRS), the McMaster Model of Family Functioning (MCRS) and the Family Health Scales (FHS). A central purpose was to investigate whether observational rating scales designed to measure family functioning can also be used to assess couple functioning. One hundred and sixty-six drug abusing women, receiving primary drug treatment in two metropolitan drug agencies in the southwest of the US, and their partners were videotaped while engaged in three couple tasks prior to receiving any treatment. The main findings indicated that all three rating scales have: (1) sufficient interrater reliability; (2) good construct validity, as reflected in factor analyses; and (3) very good convergent validity. However, there was some concern about whether these scales are as discriminating when measuring couples as they are when assessing families.     

Black Women's Body Image: An Analysis of Culture-Specific Influences

A review of the literature on racial differences in body image in Black and White women indicates body image dissatisfaction is more common in White females than Black females. However, Black women are not protected from body image issues. Research on body image concerns specifically related to Black women is limited. The present study involves focus group and individual interviews conducted with 16 Black women. Data were analyzed using qualitative methodology. Results indicate 6 major themes, with shapely and curvaceous ideal body image standards within the Black community as the most prevalent theme across data sources. Therapeutic implications emphasize recognition of culture-specific ideal standards of beauty, as well as the influence of external factors such as men, family, peers, and media on Black women's self-evaluations.     

Gender and locus of control correlates of body image dissatisfaction

The study concerned sex and various locus of control correlates of body image satisfaction. The results indicated that men and women differ significantly in the degree and in the direction of dissatisfaction towards their bodies, which were consistent with the culturally defined ideals for men and women. Significant differences were also observed regarding self-perceptions, suggesting that women more than men are more likely to suffer from depression and have lower self-esteem which was itself associated with body image satisfaction. Individual beliefs about perceived control towards achieving an ‘ideal’ body shape were assessed using a new locus of control scale which correlated significantly with two scales measuring attitudes relating to body shape. The results from this new scale suggest that perceived locus of control beliefs are important predictors of the resulting behaviours and self-perceptions associated with body shape satisfaction and dissatisfaction.     

Individual differences in the anti-fat attitudes of preschool-children: the importance of perceived body size

Preschool-age children hold negative attitudes toward overweight peers (i.e., anti-fat attitudes), but little is known about individual differences in these attitudes. The current study investigated actual weight status and perceived body size in relation to preschool-age children's anti-fat attitudes. Sixty-nine 4–6 year-olds (61% girls) were individually interviewed about their body size perceptions using a figure rating scale and anti-fat attitudes using multiple methods (including an adjective rating scale and ratings of acceptability for different body shapes). Results suggested that children's perceived body size, not actual body size, was related to their attitudes about an overweight figure and the number of figures rated as acceptable. Children who perceived themselves as heavier held fewer anti-fat attitudes. Perceived and actual body size ratings were not related to ratings of a thin figure. This study suggests the importance of examining children's body image, particularly their perceived body size, in understanding their anti-fat attitudes.     

Sex typing and the perception of body outlines

Does sex typing influence one's direct perception of gender from physical body cues? To answer this question, a study was conducted in which 47 female and 39 male subjects, after filling out the Bem Sex Role Inventory, viewed 24 body outlines varying in waist and shoulder width. Subjects were asked to indicate whether each body was female or male, or whether they were uncertain about its gender. Subjects also selected what they judged to be the most attractive and most typical female and male bodies from among the 24 body outlines. Finally, the actual shoulder, waist, and hip widths of 66 subjects were measured as a normative comparison to subjects' judgments of “typical” and “attractive” body proportions. Analyses indicated that sex-typed subjects used the “uncertain” rating less than did non-sex-typed subjects, and that males used that rating less than females did. Thus, sex-typed subjects and males showed a stronger tendency to classify stimuli by gender. Sex-typed subjects also tended to nominate more physically divergent male and female bodies as attractive than did non-sex-typed subjects; however, there were no effects of assessed masculinity or femininity on nominations of typical male and female bodies. In addition, the data provide evidence that subjects judged there to be greater physical differences between the sexes than actually exist. The results are discussed in terms of recent research on gender schemas and prototypes in person perception.     

A comparison of body size ideals, body dissatisfaction, and media influence between female track athletes, martial artists, and non-athletes

ObjectivesIn assessments of body image among athletes, there remains an important discrepancy between studies reporting, on one hand, increased body dissatisfaction among athletes and, on the other, lower body image concerns. In order to help resolve this contradiction, the present study examined body size ideals, body dissatisfaction, and media influence among female recreational athletes and non-athletes.MethodForty-one track athletes (a judged sport in which leanness is actively promoted), 47 women involved in Taek Won Do (a martial art with little or no emphasis on leanness), and 44 non-athletes completed self-report measures of ideal body size, body dissatisfaction, and media influence, and provided their demographic details.ResultsResults showed that, after controlling for participants' body mass index (BMI), there were no significant between-group differences in ideal body size. By contrast, track athletes reported the highest body dissatisfaction scores and the highest internalisation of athletic media messages. Results of a regression analysis showed that, for the total sample, participants' BMI and internalisation of athletic media messages predicted body dissatisfaction over-and-above involvement in the different sports.ConclusionThese results support the suggestion that women participating in leanness-promoting sports experience greater body dissatisfaction than women in other sports or non-athletes.     

男性理想体型变化及其影响因素

现代男性对自身体型的关注程度日益升高,理想体型也发生变化,从单一的肌肉发达体型发展为低体脂高肌肉的双维度体型。影响男性理想体型的因素主要分为两类:生物因素和社会文化因素。生物因素方面,不同性别、年龄和性取向的群体拥有不同的男性理想体型;社会文化方面,社会文化通过家庭、同伴和媒体三个渠道向理想体型施加影响。未来的研究应该进一步通过实验确立体脂与肌肉双维度的男性理想体型,并结合纵向研究验证生物及社会文化因素的影响,完善男性理想体型的理论系统,为政府制定身体意象相关的干预措施和政策提供详实有力的理论依据。     

Wanting a body that's better than average: the effect of manipulated body norms on ideal body size perception

We examined the effect of body norms on ideal and current body size perception. In Study One, female participants were randomly assigned to one of three experimental conditions: (1) a thinner body norm, (2) a heavier body norm, or (3) no body norm. Body norms were manipulated by indicating a bogus "population average," and current and ideal body size perception were subsequently measured using a body silhouettes measure. Women had a thinner ideal body size in the thinner norm condition than in the heavier norm condition. Study Two replicated these results, but in a sample of young men and with regards to muscularity rather than thinness. Men had a more muscular ideal body size in the more muscular norm condition than in the less muscular norm condition. Current body size perception was also influenced by body norms, but only for women and after controlling for BMI.