Changes in Weight, Body Image Perception and Self-Efficacy: A Study on Italian Adolescents during the Pandemic Period

Abstract

The lockdown period in Italy, due to Covid-19 government restrictions, caused sedentary behavior and a reduction in physical activity, with an increase in body weight and a change in body perception. Body image includes beliefs about one’s appearance. Women tend to exhibit poor body image compared to men; if we consider adolescence, this difference tends to be greater. In addition, only a small percentage of adolescents believe their body image to be adequate. Given that adolescence represents one of the periods with the highest level of physical change, including changes in weight, height, and body shape, we wanted to study how self-efficacy can be affected by body image. Studies have shown that self-efficacious students tend to be more persistent in the face of unexpected difficulties, particularly important in the current pandemic conditions. In our study, we analyze the relationship between the variation of perceived weight after two months of lockdown, and Self-efficacy, mediated by body image perception in a sample of Italian adolescents. Simple mediation analyses were conducted using PROCESS 3.5 for SPSS 27. Two-hundred and fifty high school students from northern Italy took part in the study (82% female, with a mean age of 16 years ±1,43). The data confirmed a partial mediation effect of body image perception. These results highlight how body image assumes significance for one of the most relevant developmental tasks for adolescents related to evaluation and self-perception affecting their self-efficacy, which is also a predictor of their academic achievement. We hope that studies like these can support the importance of interventions aimed at promoting well-being among adolescents, specifically regarding aspects of physical and motivational self-evaluation.

PE-Iv (Panorama Education-Italian version): the adaptation/validation of 5 scales, a step towards a SEL approach in Italian schools

“…In other words, promoting socio-relational skills can help improve students’ relationships with peers and teachers and increase their satisfaction with the school experience by increasing their academic engagement ( Durlak et al, 2011 ), thereby reducing school dropout ( Wang et al, 2016 ) especially after 2 years since the start of the pandemic which has profoundly changed the way we understand schooling ( Lattke et al, 2020 ). Moreover, the earlier in age this approach is put into practice, the sooner children and youth are able to become more self/socially aware and self-determined ( Davidow et al, 2016 ; Denham, 2018 ; De Lorenzo et al, 2021 ).…”