The Characteristics, Influential Factors, And Intervention Of Body Dissatisfaction Among Middle School Students

Body dissatisfaction defined as a discrepancy between the perceived and the desired or ideal body weight and shape that can lead to cognitive, affective, behavioral, and/or perceptual disturbances. Body dissatisfaction is a conmen concern to Adolescents, which occurs at such a high rates that some researchers coined the term "normative discontent" to characterize the phenomenon. Body dissatisfaction could induce a serious Psychological and behavioral problems, such as dieting, bulimia, emotional stress, low self-esteem and so on. In the west, research in the area focused on characteristics, measuring tools, risk factors, mechanism, and intervention program of body dissatisfaction among adolescents. However, there has been a relative lack of research in China, especially for intervention program of body dissatisfaction among Chinese adolescents. At present, there was only one cognition-oreinted intervention to body dissatisfaction among adolescent girls conducted by Pan, et al. in China (Pan & Chen, et al.,2010), and the intervention program were lack of behavior-oreinted intervention for nutrition and physical activities to body dissatisfaction. Besides, there has been no intervention program for boys'dissatisfaction in China.Therefore, studies concerned characteristics, risk factors, and especially intervention program for body dissatisfaction in our culture context not only enrich the theory of body image, but also provide theoretical support and method basis for intervention to body dissatisfaction among adolescents.Based on the exist literature, we conducted three researches to systematically investigate the characteristics, risk factors, and intervention program for body dissatisfaction among middle school students. In study 1 and study 2, we used questionnaire survey to explore characteristics of body dissatisfaction among 677 students, and construct the predictive models for risk factors of body dissatisfaction. Based on study 1 and study 2, in study 3 we conducted intervention to decrease body dissatisfaction and built healthy body viewpoint among middle school students, by means of a system of cognition-orientated and behavior-orientated intervention activities in regular training courses. The conclusion of three studies demonstrate that,(1) The characteristics of body dissatisfaction among middle school students are as following, first, on the whole, middle school students are satisfied with their body image, and the degree of dimension dissatisfaction from high to low in turn is the general feature, short, fat, and appearance. Second, there are significant differences in the whole body dissatisfaction between urban students and rural students, and in specific dimensions, the body dissatisfaction is higher for urban students than rural students in general feature and appearance. Third, with the growth in family income, the students' body dissatisfaction decreased in the whole, general feature, and appearance. Fourth, there are significant gender differences in body dissatisfaction. Girls have higher dissatisfaction than boys in the whole, general feature, and fat. Fifth, the students'body dissatisfaction differs greatly in different ages, and the whole body dissatisfaction, short dissatisfaction, and fat dissatisfaction fluctuate with the growth of age. The body dissatisfaction has increased significantly from 12 to 15 years old, decreased in 16 years, and increased again in 18 years for the whole body dissatisfaction. The short dissatisfaction has increased significantly from 12 to 16 years old, decreased in 16 years, and increased again in 18 years. The fat dissatisfaction has increased significantly from 12 to 15 years old, decreased in 16 years.(2)For both genders, BMI exerted its influence on body dissatisfaction directly and indirectly through peer appearance teasing. Three sources of sociocultural influence, peer appearance teasing, media pressure, and family influence, also directly predicted body dissatisfaction. Besides, peer appearance teasing indirectly influence body dissatisfaction through self-esteem, and media pressure exerted its influence on body dissatisfaction indirectly through ideal-body internalization. Gender differences were found in the relation between mediational mechanisms (social comparison) and body dissatisfaction. For females but not males, social comparison acted significant mediators between sociocultural influence (peer appearance teasing and media pressure) and body dissatisfaction.(3)The intervention program could effectively decrease the students'body dissatisfaction. Gender differences were found in the intervention effect. For girls, body dissatisfaction decreased significantly after intervention, but not boys. Whatever, differences were also found between overweigt students and normal weight students in the intervention effect. For overweigt ones, body dissatisfaction decreased significantly after intervention, but not normal weight ones. Results of the survey and interviews conducted to students in intervention group demonstrate that, the intervention program had a certain positive impact on both girls and boys, and their body satisfaction and self-confidence increased after completion of the intervention program. These finding indicated that the feasibility of the program was high, and it's worth further expanding and promoting.