Does masculinity moderate the relationship of height with height dissatisfaction? Findings from an Internet forum for short statured men

O'Gorman, Beth; Sheffield, Jeanie; Griffiths, Scott

doi:10.1016/j.bodyim.2019.09.002

Cited by 14 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…In view of this, the present findings raise the possibility that boys of shorter height may experience dissatisfaction with this uncontrollable aspect of their appearance, which consequently leads them to engage in compensatory disordered eating behaviors in an attempt to change other aspects of their appearance; for example, to attain a slim and muscular body shape. However, this supposition warrants further examination, in addition to previously indicated moderating factors, such as conformity to masculine norms (O'Gorman et al 2019). As may be the case with depressive symptoms, it is possible that height becomes increasingly influential on disordered eating later in adolescence.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 89%

“…Given that breast development, one of the most visible indicators of pubertal development among girls, is often considered to signify femininity and sexuality (Baucom et al 2005 ), its psychological impact warrants exploration among adolescents. Similarly, given that height, one of the most visible indicators of puberty among boys, is associated with masculinity (O’Gorman et al 2019 ), its psychological effects during adolescence warrant investigation. While breast development and height might contribute to the development of eating pathology and depressive symptoms, their impacts are hypothesized to be different.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In contrast, growing in height is likely to be a more favorable experience for boys, since it moves them closer to the Westernized appearance ideal for men, which emphasizes tall stature among other things (Ricciardelli and McCabe 2004 ). While body image research has primarily focused on muscularity, qualitative and quantitative studies indicate that height is an important characteristic for men (O’Gorman et al 2019 ). In addition to taller stature being associated with greater body satisfaction, it has been related to greater masculinity and dominance (O’Gorman et al 2019 ); with shorter males attributing higher levels of dominance to taller men and experiencing lower conformity to masculine norms (Batres et al 2015 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…While body image research has primarily focused on muscularity, qualitative and quantitative studies indicate that height is an important characteristic for men (O’Gorman et al 2019 ). In addition to taller stature being associated with greater body satisfaction, it has been related to greater masculinity and dominance (O’Gorman et al 2019 ); with shorter males attributing higher levels of dominance to taller men and experiencing lower conformity to masculine norms (Batres et al 2015 ). Thus, it has been suggested that shorter men may experience greater difficulty due to internalizing sociocultural attitudes which associate masculine attributes with greater stature (O’Gorman et al 2019 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition to taller stature being associated with greater body satisfaction, it has been related to greater masculinity and dominance (O’Gorman et al 2019 ); with shorter males attributing higher levels of dominance to taller men and experiencing lower conformity to masculine norms (Batres et al 2015 ). Thus, it has been suggested that shorter men may experience greater difficulty due to internalizing sociocultural attitudes which associate masculine attributes with greater stature (O’Gorman et al 2019 ). Growth spurts are one of the most salient indicators of puberty among pre-adolescent boys, and there is greater variance in height among this younger demographic compared with older groups (Haas and Campirano 2006 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

Prospective Pathways to Depressive Symptoms and Disordered Eating in Adolescence: A 7-Year Longitudinal Cohort Study

Lewis‐Smith

Bray

Salmon

et al. 2020

J Youth Adolescence

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Eating pathology and depressive symptoms increase during adolescence, yet predictive pathways remain predominantly unexplored, despite their implications for prevention. The present study aimed to identify shared risk factors for eating pathology and depressive symptoms by evaluating an adapted Dual-Pathway Model of disordered eating, which postulated that higher BMI would predict disordered eating and depressive symptoms via pathways between body dissatisfaction, later BMI, depressive symptoms, and visible indicators of puberty (breast development for girls, height for boys). The participants were 8915 children (49% girls) from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children, a population-based cohort study of British children, who were assessed at different intervals between the age of 7 to 14 years. Path analyses revealed that, for girls, childhood BMI exerted indirect effects on disordered eating via body dissatisfaction, depressive symptoms, and more advanced breast development, with indirect pathways identified to depressive symptoms via earlier depressive symptoms and more advanced breast development. For boys, childhood BMI had indirect effects on disordered eating via later BMI and body dissatisfaction, while only earlier depressive symptoms were found to have an independent and direct effect on adolescent depressive symptoms. This study reveals shared and independent risk factors for eating pathology and depressive symptoms in adolescence and suggests targets for preventative interventions, including higher BMI, body dissatisfaction, and depressive symptoms, in addition to advanced breast development, for girls.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 89%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Prospective Pathways to Depressive Symptoms and Disordered Eating in Adolescence: A 7-Year Longitudinal Cohort Study

Lewis‐Smith

Bray

Salmon

et al. 2020

J Youth Adolescence

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Height dissatisfaction and loneliness among adolescents: the chain mediating role of social anxiety and social support

Bai

2022

Curr Psychol

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Previous research on body dissatisfaction has mainly focused on the dissatisfaction with weight and appearance. Limited research has examined the dissatisfaction with another major body feature that is important to our social relationships and personal well-being, namely, body height. We hypothesized that height dissatisfaction would predict more intense loneliness among adolescents, and that this relationship is mediated by greater social anxiety and reduced social support. Participants of this study were 515 Chinese high school students. The Shortness subscale of the Negative Physical Self Scale, Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents, Perceived Social Support Scale, and ULS-8 were integrated into a paper-and-pencil survey. The results revealed that adolescents with high levels of height dissatisfaction reported higher levels of loneliness. A chain mediation model showed that the relationship between height dissatisfaction and loneliness could be both sequentially mediated by social anxiety and social support, and mediated by social anxiety. However, no mediating role of social support was found. We also found that body height did not predict social anxiety or social support, but can predict loneliness. The current findings provide novel insights into the occurrence of loneliness among adolescents, and indicate that negative self-perceptions of body height and the resulting social anxiety can lead to loneliness.

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An examination of the relationship between height, height dissatisfaction, drive for thinness and muscularity, and eating disorder symptoms in north American women

Talbot,

Mahlberg

2024

Curr Psychol

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Recent research has evidenced the importance of height dissatisfaction in male body image, however the impact of height on body image in women remains relatively unexplored. Our study aimed to investigate the association between height, heightdissatisfaction, body dissatisfaction, and eating disorder symptoms in a sample of 139 women from the USA. Participants were recruited using Amazon's MTurk and reported their actual and ideal height, as well as completing measures of height dissatisfaction, and drive for thinness, drive for muscularity, and eating disorder symptoms. A paired sample t-test was utilised to examine differences in participants’ actual and ideal height. Additionally, linear hierarchical multiple regression was used to assess whether height, eating disorder symptoms, drive for thinness, and drive for muscularity uniquely predicted height dissatisfaction, and significant interactions were explored using a simple slope analysis complemented with a Johnson-Neyman analysis. Results showed that 48.92% of women reported identical actual and ideal height, 33.09% of women wanted to be taller, and 13.67% wanted to be shorter than their actual height. Additionally, shorter women tended to report greater height dissatisfaction, and higher levels of drive for thinness and drive for muscularity were associated with increased height dissatisfaction. However, eating disorder symptoms did not uniquely account for significant variance in height dissatisfaction once accounting for drive for thinness and muscularity. Our exploratory analysis also revealed that for taller than average women, height dissatisfaction was more strongly predicted by drive for muscularity, thus implicating the significance of height and muscle dissatisfaction for taller women. Overall, our study demonstrated that height and height dissatisfaction are important components to the theoretical construct of women’s body image, and therefore should be integrated into theoretical models of female body dissatisfaction and considered in assessment, formulation, and treatment of body image-related disorders. Further research with larger and more diverse samples, including clinical populations, is warranted to validate and extend our findings.

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Does masculinity moderate the relationship of height with height dissatisfaction? Findings from an Internet forum for short statured men

Cited by 14 publications

References 26 publications

Prospective Pathways to Depressive Symptoms and Disordered Eating in Adolescence: A 7-Year Longitudinal Cohort Study

Prospective Pathways to Depressive Symptoms and Disordered Eating in Adolescence: A 7-Year Longitudinal Cohort Study

Height dissatisfaction and loneliness among adolescents: the chain mediating role of social anxiety and social support

An examination of the relationship between height, height dissatisfaction, drive for thinness and muscularity, and eating disorder symptoms in north American women

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