title: Testing the norm to fat talk for women of varying size: what's weight got to do with it?
abstract: "Fat talk" is the conversational phenomenon whereby people berate their bodies in social circles. This study assessed whether norms of fat talk differ for overweight versus average-weight women. Sixty-three women read a script depicting a fat talk situation during which an overweight or average-weight target woman engaged in positive or negative body talk. Regardless of the target's weight, participants perceived it to be more typical and less surprising if she engaged in negative body talk (fat talk) rather than positive body talk. Furthermore, fat talk from either weight group did not affect the likeability of the target, but women, overweight or of average weight, who engaged in positive talk were perceived to have more socially desirable personality characteristics.
authors.affiliation: Appalachian State University, Boone, NC 28608, United States.
authors.forename: Amy
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Barwick
authors.forename: Doris
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Bazzini
authors.forename: Denise
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Martz
authors.forename: Courtney
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Rocheleau
authors.forename: Lisa
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Curtin
mesh_terms: D000273:Adipose Tissue; D000293:Adolescent; D001828:Body Image; D015992:Body Mass Index; D049628:Body Size; D001835:Body Weight; D002605:Character; D004038:Diet, Reducing / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D005783:Gender Identity; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D050177:Overweight / Q000523:psychology*; D012647:Self-Assessment; D012928:Social Desirability; D013008:Somatotypes; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology; D013851:Thinness / Q000523:psychology; D014705:Verbal Behavior; D055815:Young Adult