Racial/ethnic differences in Body Mass Index: the roles of beliefs about thinness and dietary restriction |
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| Authors: | Vaughan Christine A Sacco William P Beckstead Jason W |
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| Affiliation: | aCenter for Developmental Science, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States;bDepartment of Psychology, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida, United States;cCollege of Nursing, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida, United States |
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| Abstract: | The greater BMI of African American relative to Caucasian women is implicated in racial/ethnic disparities in health outcomes. The principal aim of the current study was to evaluate a theoretical account of racial/ethnic differences in BMI. Thin-ideal internalization, the perceived romantic appeal of thinness, dietary restriction, weight, and height were assessed via self-report measures on a sample of female undergraduates of African American (n = 140) and Caucasian (n = 676) race/ethnicity. Using structural equation modeling, support was obtained for the primary hypothesis that racial/ethnic differences in BMI are explained by Caucasian women's greater thin-ideal internalization and perceived romantic appeal of thinness, thereby resulting in greater levels of dietary restriction. Current findings illustrate the potential for racial/ethnic differences in sociocultural standards of appearance to influence racial/ethnic disparities in physical health, of which BMI is a marker, via effects on weight control behavior. |
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| Keywords: | Racial/ethnic differences Thin-ideal internalization Body mass Dietary restriction |
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