The Effects of Obesity on the Clinical Judgments of Mental Health Professionals

Young, Laura; Powell, Brian

doi:10.2307/2136755

Cited by 126 publications

(82 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…One promising area of research is an exploration of the complex relationship between fat phobia and other personality and sociodemographic characteristics such as body mass index, education, occupation, age and sex. 9,17,33,41 Other studies might investigate whether fat phobia is related to the ability to lose weight and maintain weight loss or the ability of fat people to make healthy lifestyle changes, such as developing healthier eating patterns, exercising more, and increasing their range of daily activities, thereby living life`as if they were thin'. 8 The extent of fat phobia in parents could be compared to levels of fat phobia in their children, positive or negative body image in their children, and the nutritional quality of food served to their children.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…31 In the clinical setting, psychologists have described fat people as more unattractive and embarrassed than non-obese people, 32 and a group of mental health practitioners rated obese clients more negatively on a number of aspects of psychological functioning. 33 Because critical attitudes towards fat people are so prevalent, some fat people internalize negative societal messages. 1,3,8 ± 10,34 This can cause fat people Ð or even average weight people who feel fat Ð to place restrictions on important aspects of their lives, such as going to school, changing jobs, buying stylish clothes, dating or enjoying a sexual relationship, or even seeking medical care.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Fat phobia scale revisited: the short form

2001

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OBJECTIVE: To develop a shortened form of the original 50-item fat phobia scale. METHOD: The ®rst factor from the original fat phobia scale Ð undisciplined, inactive and unappealing Ð was identi®ed as a potential short form of the scale. A new sample of 255 people completed the original 50-item scale. The reliability of a shortened 14-item version of the scale was tested and compared to that of the full scale using both the new sample and the original sample of 1135 study participants. RESULTS: The fat phobia scale Ð short form demonstrated excellent reliability in both samples and was strongly correlated with the 50-item scale. Mean and 90th percentile scores are given for both the long and short versions of the scale. CONCLUSION: The shortened fat phobia scale is expected to increase the utility of the measure in a diverse array of research and clinical settings. Future research should focus on developing scale norms for the general population and conducting research on fat phobia in males and among different ethnic groups.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fat phobia scale revisited: the short form

2001

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“…13,14 Although most of these studies are more than 15 y old, they converge in showing that physicians hold overweight individuals responsible for their condition and attribute their failures at weight loss to gluttony and a general lack of cooperation and discipline. [15][16][17][18] Compared with individuals in the general population, a recent study revealed that physicians and other health professionals were somewhat less likely to show overt forms of antifat bias toward heavy patients; but that they were equally likely to exhibit cognitive biases and deep-rooted stereotypes against heavy individuals. 19 Such biases may be strengthened in physicians during their training, as they realize that heavier people often require more space, more effort increased recovery times, and nonstandardized sizes of equipment.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Weighing the care: patients' perceptions of physician care as a function of gender and weight

Hebl

Mason

2003

Int J Obes

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OBJECTIVE:To examine patients' reports of the level of care that they receive from their physicians, and determine the influence of weight and gender in these reports. DESIGN: In a four-cell design, male and female, overweight and nonoverweight patients reported on the medical care that they received immediately following their appointment. SUBJECTS: A total of 125 patients affiliated to one of four large clinics in the Texas Medical Center of Houston completed this study. MEASUREMENTS:Patients reported the positivity of the care that they received, the time that physicians spent with them, and the extent to which physicians discussed weight-related topics with them. RESULTS: Overweight patients, as a whole, did not report poorer levels of care than did their thinner counterparts. Rather, the weight and gender of the patient significantly interacted across each of the measures to reveal some divergence between male and female patients' weight-based experiences. When significant differences in reported perceptions emerged, overweight men reported deficits in care relative to average weight men (eg, physicians spent less time), whereas overweight women reported enhanced care relative to average weight women (eg, better levels of care, more topics discussed). CONCLUSION: Based on patients' reports, this study reveals that physician care may not be as influenced by patient weight as previously thought. Yet, there is a discernable impact of patients' weight on physician behavior. Overweight men, who may comprise the most at-risk population, indicate that less time is spent with them than that indicated by average weight men. While this may be alarming, overweight women do not report reductions in care. We propose that not only might physicians respond to them differently, but overweight female patients may also be engaging in denial strategies or compensatory behaviors that assure them of quality care.

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“…Negative attitudes have been observed in medical students and qualified practitioners, 1 -4 nurses, 5,6 dietetic students and dietitians, 7 and mental health professionals. 8 Negative attitudes towards overweight people may be linked to beliefs about the causes of weight gain. In particular, the belief that weight is under volitional control is associated with more negative attitudes and a perception of personal responsibility and blame.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It should be expected that negativity would increase with increasing overweight because this is more deviant from the norm. 8 Thus, it may be that the very people who are most in need of help are the ones for whom prejudicial attitudes are most likely to get in the way.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Health professionals' views of overweight people and smokers

2001

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OBJECTIVES:To examine health professionals' views of overweight people, to compare these to their views of smokers, and to explore the role of level of severity on these perceptions. DESIGN: A postal survey of health professionals employing a two by two, independent factorial design. The health category (overweight or smoker) was divided by level of severity (moderate or extreme), so that respondents received questionnaires about either: (i) moderately overweight people; (ii) extremely overweight people; (iii) moderate smokers; or (iv) heavy smokers. PARTICIPANTS: Two-hundred and fifty-five general medical practitioners and clinical psychologists in the north of England. MEASUREMENTS: A questionnaire was designed to explore beliefs about the causes, attitudes towards, and perceptions of responsibility of overweight people and smokers. RESULTS: Moderately and extremely overweight people were perceived as having reduced self-esteem, sexual attractiveness and health, and to be moderately responsible for changing their situation (but less so than smokers). There were clear level effects in the perceptions of overweight, but not so for smokers. Of the four groups, moderately overweight people were viewed most positively and extremely overweight (obese) people were viewed least positively. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, health professionals' attitudes to overweight people were neutral to negative rather than entirely negative. However, where apparent negative attitudes were more likely to be directed at obese people than moderately overweight people. As obesity is a risk to health, the practice implications of health professionals' negative attitudes or patients' reticence to visit professionals who treat them with disregard must be addressed.

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The Effects of Obesity on the Clinical Judgments of Mental Health Professionals

Cited by 126 publications

References 41 publications

Fat phobia scale revisited: the short form

Fat phobia scale revisited: the short form

Weighing the care: patients' perceptions of physician care as a function of gender and weight

Health professionals' views of overweight people and smokers

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