title: Trajectories of body mass and self-concept in black and white girls: the lingering effects of stigma.
abstract: As a stigmatizing condition, obesity may lead to the internalization of devalued labels and threats to self-concept. Modified labeling theory suggests that the effects of stigma may outlive direct manifestations of the discredited characteristic itself. This article considers whether obesity's effects on self-concept linger when obese youth enter the normal body mass range. Using longitudinal data from the National Growth and Health Study on 2,206 black and white girls, we estimated a parallel-process growth mixture model of body mass linked to growth models of body image discrepancy and self-esteem. We found that discrepancy was higher and self-esteem lower in formerly obese girls compared to girls always in the normal range and comparable to chronically obese girls. Neither body image discrepancy nor self-esteem rebounded in white girls despite reduction in body mass, suggesting that the effects of stigma linger. Self-esteem, but not discrepancy, did rebound in black girls.
authors.affiliation: Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA. smustillo@purdue.edu
authors.forename: Sarah A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Mustillo
authors.forename: Kimber L
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Hendrix
authors.forename: Markus H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Schafer
mesh_terms: D001741:Black or African American / Q000523:psychology*; D001828:Body Image; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008603:Mental Health; D009765:Obesity / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D011287:Prejudice; D011594:Psychometrics; D012649:Self Concept; D057545:Social Stigma; D013223:Statistics as Topic; D013997:Time Factors; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D044465:White People / Q000523:psychology*; D016387:Women's Health