title: A prospective study on the impact of peer and parental pressure on body dissatisfaction in adolescent girls and boys.
abstract: The current study explores the role of appearance-related social pressure regarding changes in body image in adolescent girls (n=236) and boys (n=193) over a 1-year-period. High school students aged 11-16 completed measures of body dissatisfaction (i.e., weight and muscle concerns) and appearance-related social pressure from peers and parents. Three aspects proved to be particularly crucial: Parental encouragement to control weight and shape was a strong predictor of weight concerns in boys and girls alike; influences of friends affected gender-specific body image concerns by leading to weight concerns in girls and muscle concerns in boys; finally appearance-based exclusion was a predictor of weight concerns in boys. The findings provide longitudinal evidence for the crucial impact of appearance-related social pressure and suggest that a detailed assessment of different types of social impacts can identify concrete targets for effective prevention and therapy for weight-related problems among adolescents.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Potsdam, Karl-Liebknecht-Strasse 24/25, Potsdam, Germany. srudolf@uni-potsdam.de
authors.forename: Susanne
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Helfert
authors.forename: Petra
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Warschburger
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001828:Body Image; D001835:Body Weight; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D033062:Friends / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D010379:Peer Group; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012649:Self Concept; D017678:Sex Distribution; D012925:Social Conformity; D012928:Social Desirability; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000523:psychology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires