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Body dissatisfaction in female adolescents: extent and correlates

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Abstract

This study aimed to assess the extent, patterns, and predictors of feelings of body dissatisfaction experienced by female German adolescents. Using 3D-avatar software, a sample population of 144 girls between 14 and 17 years of age was asked to estimate their actual body image, their desired body image (individual ideal), and the body image they believed their parents and their best female friend considered to be the ideal body image for them. The participants estimated their actual body mass index (BMI) to be 18.82 ± 3.01. The individual ideal body shape reported was significantly thinner, with a BMI score of 16.84 ± 2.51. Given a girl who stands 1.65 m and weighs 55 kg, this corresponds to a difference in weight of about 5.5 kg. After adjustment for the participant’s self-reported BMI, participating in an esthetic sport was correlated with a significantly lower body dissatisfaction. Conversely, low socio-economic status and the amount of time spent watching TV was correlated with a significantly higher body dissatisfaction. Negative body image-related comments made by parents were significantly associated with body dissatisfaction. The girls who participated in this study would like to be an average of 1.97 BMI units thinner. The findings presented here suggest that future intervention measures should focus on the risk groups of physically inactive girls, those who smoke, and those with a lower social status and high rates of TV consumption. Intervention measures would be especially effective in German schools which offer lower education levels and should include the pupils’ parents, who should be informed about the negative effects weight- and diet-related comments have on their children’s body images.

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Acknowledgments

Besides the authors, the GOAL Study group consists of Prof. Dr. Stephan Zipfel, Dr. Katrin Giel, Astrid Schubring, and Alexia Schnell. We would like to thank Dr. Holger Hoffmann for providing the 3D avatar software of Prof. Dr. Karl Grammer and his group at the Ludwig-Boltzmann Institute in Wien. The GOAL Study (German Young Olympic Athletes’ Lifestyle and Health Management Study) is funded by the German Federal Institute of Sport Science (BISp), Bonn, Germany. Without the help of Isabel Thielmann, B.Sc., Paula Marmann, and Birte Gehm in the preparation of the manuscript, the completion of the paper would have not been possible. The authors would also like to thank the scientific advisory board (Prof. Dr. Karl-Heinrich Bette, Dr. Hubert Hörterer, Michael John, Dr. Winfried Nowack, Dr. Sandra Ückert, and Prof. Dr. Werner Vogd) as well as Sabine Stell and Dr. Peter Stehle from the Federal Institute of Sport Science for their very helpful comments and their support during this nationwide study.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest. The authors had and have no financial relationship with the organization that sponsored the research.

Ethical standards

This study complies with the current German laws. The ethics committee of the Medical Faculty of Tübingen University, Germany, approved the research project (222/2009BO1).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Medical Faculty Mannheim, Mannheim Institute of Public Health, Social and Preventive Medicine, Heidelberg University, Ludolf-Krehl-Straße 7-11, 68167, Mannheim, Germany

    Sven Schneider, Melanie Weiß & Katharina Diehl

  2. Institute of Sport Science, University of Tübingen, Wilhelmstraße 124, 72074, Tübingen, Germany

    Ansgar Thiel & Jochen Mayer

  3. Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Tübingen, Osianderstraße 5, 72076, Tübingen, Germany

    Anne Werner

  4. University Clinic for Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy Medical Psychology, Frauensteige 6, 89075, Ulm, Germany

    Holger Hoffmann

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  1. Sven Schneider
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  2. Melanie Weiß
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  3. Ansgar Thiel
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  4. Anne Werner
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  5. Jochen Mayer
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Correspondence to Sven Schneider.

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Schneider, S., Weiß, M., Thiel, A. et al. Body dissatisfaction in female adolescents: extent and correlates. Eur J Pediatr 172, 373–384 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00431-012-1897-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00431-012-1897-z

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