Describes a school-based group intervention designed to address issues of body image, self-esteem, weight, and eating disturbances. This 10-session group provides female high school students with opportunities to explore their concerns about relationships, appearance, and what it means to be female. Provides descriptions of narrative techniques…

Examines the hypothesis that early adolescent girls (N=175) with more negative weight-related body images would report higher levels of depressive symptoms. Results indicate that the more subjective and personal measures of weight-related body image discontent (weight dissatisfaction and weight concerns) were associated with increased depressive…

For female students and professional dancers, dance imposes a low body-weight image. Despite high energy needs, many female dancers consume fewer nutrients than recommended when they perceive themselves as overweight. These abnormal behaviors can lead to malnutrition, dehydration, and vitamin deficiencies, or even to medical problems such as…

The purpose of this study was to test a conceptual model based on theoretical and empirically supported relationships related to the influences of weight perceptions, weight concerns, desires to change weight, friends, age and location in relation to physical activity (PA) and smoking in adolescents. A total of 1242 males and 1446 females (mean…

The primary research question in this study was whether adolescents' experiences of and responses to teasing were related to the content of a tease and to particular ethnicity. Caucasian (n = 27) and African American adolescents (n = 22) between 12 to 17 years of age were asked to write about an experience of being teased regarding an aspect of…

Due to concerns that body shape preferences contribute to eating disorders among women, a new method to assess observer preferences for female body shapes was devised. In prior studies women have preferred thin models, but men have preferred models of average weight. In Experiment 1, an underweight female model was photographed in a white top and…

Percentage of body fat, ratings of perceived exertion, and maximal oxygen consumption were obtained during a continuous running treadmill test on 127 high school female cross country runners. The relatively low relationships between the variables tested and running performance indicated that other factors may be more important determinants of…

Examined the relationship between weight cycling and psychological health in 120 obese women. Weight cycling was defined in two ways by retrospective self-report: total lifetime weight loss and total number of weight cycles greater than or equal to 20 pounds. Psychological self-report measures assessed psychiatric symptoms, eating behavior, mood,…

The article examines cultural pressure for extreme thinness in the United States and its impact as a possible predisposing factor for developing eating disorders among adolescent females. Preventive strategies are recommended to help adolescents balance this pressure and their own desire for attractiveness within the larger context of good health.…

Describes a study of weight control techniques and bulimic tendencies among elite female participants in an Olympic Swimming Selection Meet. Results showed concern with thinness, body dissatisfaction, and unhealthy eating, dieting, and weight loss patterns among participants. Discusses the explanatory power of the PRECEDE model. (SM)

Early adolescent girls, predominantly of normal weight, were seen for 2 consecutive years and completed measures assessing their dieting, body image, and relationships with parents; weights and heights were also measured. Mothers rated daughters' pubertal growth. Findings indicated that negative parent-adolescent relationships are linked to higher…

Examined whether body mass index (BMI) and perception of a body weight problem predict level of self esteem and depression in Korean female adolescents. Results showed that perception of a weight problem, but not BMI, contributed significantly to the prediction of level of self esteem and depression. (BF)

As women have gained entry and status in the workforce over the past century, societal focus on female beauty and thinness has intensified, and rates of eating disorders have risen. In tandem with these trends, many career women have come to associate success at work with the ability to maintain strict control over body weight. This control…

The current society emphasizes physical appearance and physical fitness. Individual's self-esteem has been shown to be linked with physical appearance. Methods: A random sample comprising of 100 male and 100 female (N = 200) adolescents was selected. The subjects were administered the Current Thoughts Scale and the Dieting Beliefs Scale for…

The politics of body size has been the topic of intriguing feminist work. Although in the author's view this issue is still undertheorized, the author has long sought for a way to bring what "does" exist in the literature into her academic activities. The opportunity arose when, as a graduate student at the University of Michigan in…