Cross-cultural explanations of body image disturbance in Western cultural samples.

OBJECTIVE

We replicated and extended the findings of S. M. Stormer and J. K. Thompson (1996), by comparing the relationships among body image disturbance (BID) and teasing history, age of pubertal onset, societal pressures to be thin, and appearance comparison, across three Western cultures.

METHODS

College females from the United States, Italy, and England completed several BID measures, as well as measures of the four predictors. Body mass levels and self-esteem, two known correlates of BID, were also examined. Data were analyzed using first standard, then hierarchical regression procedures.

RESULTS

This investigation essentially found no cultural differences in the relationships among BID and its correlates for six of the seven criteria (BID) measures. Only one of the measures, the Figure Rating Scale (FRS), distinguished across groups.

DISCUSSION: A lack of true cultural differences, or general similarities among university students, might explain these results. Nevertheless, these findings support the use of a Western cross-cultural research model.