Body areas satisfaction and body mass in adolescents: mediating effects of actual–ideal body weight discrepancies

Abstract

Purpose This study aims at investigating prospective associations between body areas satisfaction (BAS), actual (objectively measured)-ideal body weight discrepancy, actual (self-reported)-ideal body weight discrepancy and BMI among adolescents from the general population. Methods Data were collected at three measurement points: baseline (T1), 2-month follow-up (T2), 13-month follow-up (T3) among 1011 adolescents (59.3% girls) aged 13-19 years (M = 16.30, SD = 0.82) with BMIs ranging from 15.20 to 38.78 (M = 20.01, SD = 3.33). Adolescents completed questionnaires regarding BAS (T1), actual and ideal body weight (T2). Body weight and height were measured objectively (T1 and T3). Results Adolescents satisfied with most areas of their bodies had lower levels of actual (objectively measured)-ideal body weight discrepancy, which in turn predicted higher BMI, while lower levels of actual (self-reported)-ideal body weight discrepancy predicted lower BMI. No moderating effect of gender was found. Conclusions Actual-ideal weight discrepancies may operate in complex manner prompting opposite effects on BMI. Level of evidence Level III, longitudinal study without control group.

The Associations Between the Anorexic Readiness Syndrome, Familism, and Body Image Among Physically Active Girls

“…This result is consistent with a number of studies [cf. (61)(62)(63)(64)] which proved that the greater the discrepancy between the current and ideal/expected body weight by the participants, the lower their satisfaction with it. However, this relationship is probably related to gender, as girls and women are subject to socio-cultural pressures to achieve and maintain a slim figure to a greater extent than boys and men (65).…”

Psychosocial Predictors of Body Weight Congruence in Adolescents Aged 15 and 17 Years in Poland: Findings from the Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children (HBSC) Study

“…Although scientific evidence of direct effects of social comparisons of appearance on BWC is limited, the impact of such comparisons on the risk of body dissatisfaction is well demonstrated, showing that appearance-related social comparison induces individuals to experience depressing feelings, such as body dissatisfaction [ 58 ]. In turn, satisfaction with one’s own body is related to adolescents’ inadequate weight assessment [ 8 , 59 ]. At the same time, for social comparisons of appearance to have an impact on self-perceptions of appearance, they ought to interact with the feedback regarding one’s appearance that the adolescent receives from the proximate environment or the appearance patterns that one observes and internalises, for example through exposure to social media [ 60 , 61 ].…”