What determines well-being in obesity? Associations with BMI, social skills, and social support.
OBJECTIVE
Theory and research suggest that the stigma associated with obesity has an impact on the development of social skills and social relationships which may be related to subjective well-being. The main objective was to clarify the associations between BMI (kg/m2), social skills, social support and subjective well-being in a sample of obese subjects.


METHODS
Cross-sectional study of 226 obese adults (75 females and 151 males) from the general population between the ages of 19 and 74 [mean (SD), 46.9 (13.7) years]. Mean (SD) BMI of the subjects was 36 (5.3).


METHODS
subjective well-being was measured by the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS) and by the Positive And Negative Affect Scales (PANAS). Social support was assessed with scales of the Social Support Questionnaire F-SozU and social skills with a short form of the German Insecurity Questionnaire U-24.


RESULTS
Hierarchical regression analysis showed that social support and social skill measures are relevant predictors of subjective well-being (with both independent and shared influences), while BMI is not. The obese people in our study neither differed from other comparison groups in their subjective well-being, nor did they report greater impairments in social skills or social support.


CONCLUSIONS
BMI does not seem to be the major determinant of low subjective well-being in obesity. As in healthy controls, subjective well-being is principally associated with social skills and social support.
Dierk
Jan-Michael
JM
Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, Faculty of Psychology, Philipps-University of Marburg, D-35032 Marburg, and Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Rheinische Kliniken Essen, Germany. dierk@staff.uni-marburg.de
Conradt
Matthias
M
Rauh
Elisabeth
E
Schlumberger
Pia
P
Hebebrand
Johannes
J
Rief
Winfried
W
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D015992:Body Mass Index; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000523:psychology*; D012649:Self Concept; D012944:Social Support; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires