The Effects of Gender and Body Mass Index to Body Image

International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS) | Volume V, Issue V, May 2021 | ISSN 2454–6186

The Effects of Gender and Body Mass Index to Body Image

Mary Rachelle R Wapaño, PhD
Kinaadman Research Center, Xavier University – Ateneo de Cagayan, Philippines

Abstract
This study is investigated how the body image of adolescents is affected by gender and body mass index and the interaction of both. The respondents of this study were 60 College freshmen undergraduate students. Convenience sampling was used in this study to get a preliminary gross estimate of results. Judgment sampling was also used in this study. To investigate the effects of gender and body mass and their interaction effects to body image, two-way analysis of variance was used. The results of this study supported the hypothesis that gender has an effect on body image regardless of body mass index. The results did not support the hypotheses that body mass index has a significant effect on body image regardless of gender as well as the effect of gender on body image depends on body mass index.
It is suggested that other anthropomorphic measures may be used, gender differences in body image also be further examined

Keywords: gender, body mass index, body image

Body image involves an individual’s perception, imagination, emotions, and physical sensations of and about one’s body and thought to be a basic component of self-concept or identity. In 1950, Schilder (as cited in Grogan, 2016, p. 11) defined body image as “the picture of our own body which we form in our mind.” He contended that body image is a perceptual construct; that is one’s perceived body size, and feelings of lightness or heaviness. He continued to argue that body image is also a reflection of attitudes and interactions with others. After the Schilder’s 1950 definition, the term “body image” moved beyond the perceptual construct definition, and began to focus on weight satisfaction, size perception accuracy, appearance orientation, body concern, body esteem, body schema, body appreciation. From then on, body image was re-defined as “a person’s perceptions, thoughts, and feelings about his or her body (Grogan, 2016). This definition includes perception and attitudes towards the body as well as positive and negative aspectes of body image.
In this study, body image is conceptualized as a multi-dimensional construct that represents how one thinks, feels, and behaves about his/her physical qualities (Muth & Cash, 1997). Body image is thought to have two components: body image evaluation and body image investment. Cash & Szymanski (1995) proposed that body-image evaluation component involves an individual’s perception

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