No abstract

The theoretical three-factor structure of the EDI eat/wt scales was supported in both ethnic groups. Furthermore, the Drive for Thinness scale can readily be used to make group comparisons across nonclinical samples of Caucasian and Hispanic women, but researchers should be cautious when using the other two eat/wt scales to make comparisons across these two groups.

Research suggests that mothers may play a role in girls' body image development. The ''interactive'' hypothesis specifies that qualities of the mother-daughter relationship, as opposed to maternal modeling alone, predict daughter's body image. We sought to understand how maternal relationship quality, from the perception of both daughters and mothers, was associated with preadolescent girls' body image. The relationship between motherdaughter relationship quality and daughters' body image was examined in 152 girls (ages 8-12) and their mothers. Mothers and daughters primarily identified as non-Hispanic white or Hispanic. Hierarchical linear regression analyses indicated that daughters' perception of mother-daughter relationship quality was associated with daughters' body esteem and body dissatisfaction, adding a small, but significant, amount of variance above the larger effect of child z-BMI and age. In contrast, maternal perception of motherdaughter relationship quality was not associated with any child body image measures. Young girls who perceived their relationships with their mothers more positively had healthier body images. Although effect sizes were relatively small and the cross-sectional design precludes conclusions regarding causality, these results support the ''interactive'' model of body image development whereby the characteristics of the mother-daughter relationship (as perceived by the daughter) are related to body image. Our findings support the notion that daughters' perceptions of strong mother-daughter relationships are associated with healthy child body image, and fall in line with familybased prevention efforts that attempt to enhance parentchild relationships.

V, cross-sectional descriptive study.

Obesity has become a world-wide epidemic; in the United States (U.S.) approximately two-thirds of adults are classified as overweight or obese. Military veterans’ numbers are even higher, with 77% of retired or discharged U.S. veterans falling in these weight categories. One of the most common methods of changing one’s weight is through dieting, yet little is known regarding the factors that facilitate successful dieting behavior. The current investigation tested the Theory of Planned Behavior’s (TPB) ability to predict dietary intention and future dieting in a sample of 84 overweight and obese patients attending medical clinics at a Veterans Affairs Hospital in the southwestern part of the U.S. Participants primarily were male (92%) and ethnic/racial minorities (58%). Perceived need and anticipated regret were added to the standard TPB model. While the TPB predicted dietary intention, it did not significantly account for improved dietary behaviors. Anticipated regret significantly enhanced the basic TPB’s ability to predict intention to diet, while perceived need did not. These findings highlight the difficulty in predicting sustained change in a complex behavior such as dieting to lose weight. The need for more work with older, overweight/obese medical patients attending veterans’ facilities is stressed, as is the need for such work with male patients and ethnic minorities in particular.