Modern Psychological Studies
Volume
30
Number
1
Publisher
University of Tennessee at Chattanooga
Place of Publication
Chattanooga (Tenn.)
Date
2024
Abstract
Previous literature has suggested that family pressure is the main predictor of drive for thinness (Palladino Green & Pritchard, 2003). Given the growth of social media where thin beauty is glamorized, we wanted to test if this remains true while including multiple factors that may have been disregarded in body-centric studies. Consequently, we asked which sociocultural pressure—family, peers, or media—relates the strongest with body shame, body surveillance, and drive for thinness. A sample of 1,049 undergraduate psychology students, ages 18-29, were surveyed to better understand body dissatisfaction in college students. We predicted that each sociocultural pressure would correlate with body shame, body surveillance, and drive for thinness, with family pressure being the main predictor for each. Results revealed a moderate correlation between all variables, with media pressure being the main predictor of drive for thinness. Similar to Wang and others (2020), the increase in online appearance conversations that develop into body shame supports these correlations. It is imperative that young adults are aware of how online appearance conversations could develop into body dissatisfaction. Future studies should explore other factors that contribute to the drive for thinness.
Discipline
Psychology
Document Type
article
DCMI Type
Text
Language
English
Rights
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
Recommended Citation
Ellis, Sawyer V.; Kozmiuk, Elaine M.; Pritchard, Mary E.; and Schoenherr, Heather
(2024)
"Body dissatisfaction in college students: Which sociocultural pressure best predicts drive for thinness?,"
Modern Psychological Studies: Vol. 30:
No.
1, Article 6.
Available at:
https://scholar.utc.edu/mps/vol30/iss1/6
Department
Dept. of Psychology