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Description:
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Abstract
Many men experience psychological distress as they try to obtain the ideal body as constructed by society (Pope , Phillips , and Olivardia , 2000 ) . The number of articles focusing on men and muscularity has greatly increased since the year 2000 (Thompson & Cafri , 2007 ) . Research indicates that body dissatisfaction is increasing in males and even young boys are experiencing body image dissatisfaction (Pope et al . , 2000 ) . Men with body image concerns are at risk for low self esteem , eating disorders , use of steroids , anxiety and depression (McCreary & Sasse , 2000 ; Cafri , Strauss , & Thompson , 2002 ; Olivardia , Pope , Borowiecki , & Cohane , 2004 ) .
Examining the predictors of body image distress is critical . Perfectionism and gender role socialization have been related to a drive for muscularity in men (Davis , Karvinen & McCreary , 2005 ; McCreary , Saucier , & Courtenary , 2005 ) . In addition , viewing images of muscular men and reading fitness magazines have been linked to body dissatisfaction in men (Lorensen , Grieve , & Thompson , 2004 ; Morry & Staska , 2001 ) . While the relationships between perfectionism , internalization of ideal standards transmitted by the media , and gender role conflict have been examined with body image dissatisfaction in men , no studies have linked these variables together in a single model . Investigating how these variables interact may lead to a greater understanding of the distress that men experience due to the socialization process of masculinity . The lack of racial diversity has been a limit of several research studies . The purpose of this study was to examine the relation between : 1 ) perfectionism and male body image dissatisfaction ,
and 2 ) internalization of societal messages and male body image , and to determine what role gender role conflict plays , if any in the hypothesized correlation .
Data was collected from an ethnically diverse sample of 331 college men from a
university in the southwestern United States . Hierarchical multiple linear regression
analyses were conducted . Results indicated that identifying as an Asian American ,
socially prescribed perfectionism , and internalization of societal messages were
significant positive predictors of muscle dissatisfaction . Higher levels of socially
prescribed perfectionism and internalization of societal messages were related to higher
levels of dissatisfaction with the amount of one’s body fat . None of the variables
examined served as a predictor for height dissatisfaction . Gender role conflict did not
serve as a moderator in the relationship between the variables and male body image
dissatisfaction . |