Sociocultural influences on adolescent boys' body image and body change strategies

Society provides messages about how people should ideally look and previous research has indicated these messages, both the actual messages provided and the perception of the message, influence body image. Research into male body image has shown males are concerned with having a lean and muscular body and as such, may want to decrease fat and increase their muscles. This paper explored the influence of a range of messages from parents, peers, and the media on a number of different measures of 362 adolescent boys’ body image and body change strategies. Specifically, messages about shape, food, exercise, losing weight and increasing muscles were explored in relation to satisfaction with weight and muscles, and the use of strategies to decrease weight and increase muscles. The findings indicated that parental messages were the strongest influence on body image and that parents, the media, and to a lesser extent messages from male friends were the strongest predictors of body change strategies.

A comparison of the sources and nature of body image messages perceived by indigenous Fijian and European Australian adolescent girls

Australian and Fijian adolescent girls reported on the influence that sociocultural factors, including parents, peers, and the media, had on their body image attitudes. It was expected that messages that promote a thin body would be less prevalent among Fijians, as their cultural traditions place more importance on robust body sizes. An inductive thematic analysis of the girls’ semi-structured interviews indicated that both Fijian (n = 16) and Australian (n = 16) girls (aged 13–17) reported messages from similar sources, which included parents, siblings, and friends/peers. Australian girls consistently reported messages that reinforced thinness. On the other hand, Fijian girls reported messages that emphasized both thinness and robustness. The discussion focuses on the conflict between Western ideals and cultural Fijian traditions and the implications for culturally sensitive interventions.

Body image attitudes and concerns among indigenous Fijian and European Australian adolescent girls

Research on body image has primarily been conducted among Western women who highly value the thin ideal body size. There has been limited research that has examined body image attitudes among Fijian adolescent girls who are exposed to both traditional sociocultural pressures that promote a larger body size and Western pressures that promote slimness. Using in-depth semi-structured interviews, we examined the factors associated with body image attitudes and concerns among a sample of 16 indigenous Fijian and 16 European Australian adolescent girls aged between 13–18 years. An inductive analysis of girls’ responses indicated that both groups of girls experienced body image concerns including body dissatisfaction, a preference for thinness and concerns associated with weight gain. These findings have implications for our understanding of the role of culture in shaping body image among girls and may prove useful in the development of future survey research that can be implemented among both Fijian and Western adolescents.

Adolescent body image and psychosocial functioning

Researchers have highlighted the significance of a poor body image in the development of dysfunctional eating but have systematically investigated few other outcomes. The authors examined the relationships between different aspects of body image and psychosocial functioning. Participants were 245 boys and 173 girls from Grades 8 and 9 (M age = 13.92 years, SD = 0.69 years). Respondents completed measures of physical attractiveness, body satisfaction, body image importance, body image behaviors, appearance comparison, social physique anxiety, self-esteem, depression, anxiety, and same-sex and opposite-sex relations. Whereas girls tended to report a more negative body image than did boys, the relevance of body image to self-esteem was similar for boys and girls. Concern about others' evaluation of their bodies was especially important in understanding low female self-esteem, whereas for boys, ratings of general attractiveness most strongly predicted self-esteem. The authors found a negative body image to be unrelated to symptoms of negative affect but to be strongly associated with poor opposite-sex peer relationships, especially among boys. A negative body image also affected same-sex relations among girls.

A `Rubber-hand` illusion reveals a relationship between perceptual body image and unhealthy body change

The ‘rubber-hand’ illusion, in which individuals misattribute tactile sensations felt by their hand to a rubber prosthetic hand that they see being stimulated, was employed to examine the relationship between perceptual body image and unhealthy body change in 128 volunteers. Variance in unhealthy body development in males (22%) and in bulimic symptomatology in both females and males (10%), was explained by susceptibility to the illusion. The illusion, which is relatively free from cognitive and emotional ‘contamination’, could be used to identify individuals most responsive to therapies designed to correct inaccurate body perceptions–individuals whose perceptual body image is malleable.

Relationship between body image and social and sexual functioning: gender and development trends

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between body image and social and sexual functioning. The respondents were 426 men and women from metropolitan and rural Victoria, who ranged in age from 18 to 86 years (mean age = 42.26). Respondents completed measures of attractiveness, body satisfaction, body image importance, body image behaviours, appearance comparison, social physique anxiety, self-esteem, depression, anxiety, and social and sexual functioning. Regression analyses were used to detelmine the prediction of social and sexual functioning by body image variables for men and women of different age groups, beyond the effects of psychological adjustment. The results demonstrated that while there were moderate correlations between body image and sociallsexual functioning variables, many of these relationships were best explained by the shared variance of self-esteem. There were some exceptions, particularly among middle-aged men, which are discussed.

The role of ethnicity and culture in body image and disordered eating among males

An increasing number of researchers have examined body image concerns, disordered eating, and other behaviors associated with increasing muscle size among men from different cultural groups. However, to date there has been no synthesis or evaluation of these studies. In this paper we specifically review studies which have included a comparison between males from different cultural groups with White males on body image concerns or other related behaviors. The groups include Blacks, Hispanic Americans, Asians, Native Americans, Pacific Islanders, and men from Middle Eastern countries. Overall, evidence suggests that males from a range of cultural groups engage in more extreme body change strategies and binge eating than Whites. On the other hand, there is no consistent pattern which summarizes the nature of body image concerns across the different cultures. Mediating and/or moderating variables are proposed to account for the inconsistent findings. These include body build, levels of acculturation, socio-economic status, media exposure, and internalization of the muscular and lean body ideal.

The influence of perceived body image, vanity and personal values on food consumption and related behaviour

Although food is a vital part of the chemical process of life, the manner in which people choose the foods that they eat is subject to a wide variety of external and internal influences. This study employed a sequential mixed method research design to investigate the influence of perceived body image, vanity and personal values on food purchasing behaviour among 18- to 30-year-old females. It was found that although personal values and orientation have a major influence on the food purchasing and consumption process, vanity, physical health and perceived body image were major factors of influence in the purchasing and consumption decision.

Body weight, body image, and eating behaviours : relationships with ethnicity and acculturation in a community sample of young Australian women

A study was conducted to investigate associations between ethnicity and acculturation status and risk factors for eating disorders among young adult women. A community sample of 14,779 women aged 18–23 completed a comprehensive mail-out survey, which incorporated questions on country of birth, length of time spent in Australia, body weight, weight dissatisfaction, dieting, binge eating, and compensatory disordered eating behaviours. Results showed that risk factors for eating disorders were present across a range of ethnic groups. Further, a strong acculturation effect was observed, such that the longer the time spent in Australia, the more women reported weight-related values and behaviours similar to those of Australian-born women. Results challenge claims that risk factors for disordered eating are restricted to Caucasian females in Western societies. Implications for understanding ethnic and sociocultural influences on body weight, dieting, and disordered eating are considered.