ERIC Number: EJ830364
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2009
Pages: 11
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0193-3973
EISSN: N/A
One Step Closer: Understanding the Complex Relationship between Weight and Self-Esteem in Ethnically Diverse Preadolescent Girls
Erickson, Sarah J.; Hahn-Smith, Anne; Smith, Jane Ellen
Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, v30 n2 p129-139 Mar-Apr 2009
Empirical support for the association between childhood overweight and low self-esteem is equivocal. The present study investigated how weight, ethnicity, body esteem, body dissatisfaction, and disordered eating attitudes/behaviors contribute to global and dimensional self-esteem in a non-clinical sample of Hispanic- and Anglo-American grade 3-6 girls (N = 410). Self-esteem decreased with heavier weight, primarily due to age. There were more similarities than differences between Anglo- and Hispanic-American girls, but Hispanic-American girls reported a weaker inverse association between disordered eating and self esteem. Further, age-standardized weight, body esteem, and disordered eating were unique predictors of global and dimensional self-esteem. A complex relationship emerged between weight and body esteem when predicting self-esteem: among girls with low-moderate body esteem, heavier girls had "higher" self-esteem than (relatively) lower weight girls. Parallel primary findings were obtained when predicting all six self-esteem dimensions. Future steps for understanding these results and the ethnic association difference are discussed. (Contains 4 tables.)
Descriptors: Females, Self Esteem, Eating Disorders, Grade 3, Body Weight, Correlation, Obesity, Ethnicity, Racial Differences, Self Concept, Hispanic Americans, Whites, Elementary School Students, Age Differences, Grade 4, Grade 5, Grade 6, Eating Habits
Elsevier. 6277 Sea Harbor Drive, Orlando, FL 32887-4800. Tel: 877-839-7126; Tel: 407-345-4020; Fax: 407-363-1354; e-mail: usjcs@elsevier.com; Web site: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2131
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Elementary Education; Grade 3; Grade 4; Grade 5; Grade 6
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A