Peer Ethnicity as a Mediator in the Relationship Between Ethnic Identity and Body Appreciation in Black College-Aged Women

Abstract

Strong ethnic identity is recognized as a protective factor against body image concern and eating pathology in Black women as they tend to hold cultural values in line with an acceptance of a variety of body shapes and sizes. Reinforcement of these cultural ideals may occur via same-race peer relationships. The current study examined the mediating role of same-race versus other-race peers in the relationship between ethnic identity and body appreciation in Black women. Participants were 139 Black undergraduate women (M_age = 18.94 years, M_BMI = 25.33) who completed validated measures of ethnic identity and body appreciation and reported on the ethnic makeup of their friends. We conducted mediation analysis examining the role of same-race peers on the relationship between ethnic identity and body appreciation. Same-race peers mediated the relationship between ethnic identity and body appreciation, where having a greater percentage of friends increased both ethnic identity and body appreciation in Black women. The influence of same-race peers should be considered in the development of culturally informed prevention and intervention efforts for eating pathology in Black women.

Keywords

ethnic identity Black women peer ethnicity body appreciation

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Allan

J. D.

Mayo

Michel

(1993). Body size values of White and Black women. Research in Nursing & Health, 16(5), 323–333. https://doi.org/10.1002/nur.4770160503

Arcelus

Mitchell

A. J.

Wales

Nielsen

(2011). Mortality rates in patients with anorexia nervosa and other eating disorders: A meta-analysis of 36 studies. Archives of General Psychiatry, 68(7), 724–731. https://doi.org/10.1001/archgenpsychiatry.2011.74

Awad

G. H.

Norwood

Taylor

D. S.

Martinez

McClain

Jones

Holman

Chapman-Hilliard

(2015). Beauty and body image concerns among African American college women. Journal of Black Psychology, 41(6), 540–564. https://doi.org/10.1177/0095798414550864

Baceviciene

Jankauskiene

(2020). Associations between body appreciation and disordered eating in a large sample of adolescents. Nutrients, 12(3), 752. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12030752

Baugh

Mullis

Hicks

Peterson

(2010). Ethnic identity and body image among Black and White college females. Journal of American College Health, 59(2), 105–109. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2010.483713

Casey-Cannon

S. L.

Coleman

H. L.

Knudtson

L. F.

Velazquez

C. C.

(2011). Three ethnic and racial identity measures: Concurrent and divergent validity for diverse adolescents. Identity, 11(1), 64–91. https://doi.org/10.1080/15283488.2011.540739

Cheng

Z. H.

Perko

V. L.

Fuller-Marashi

Gau

J. M.

Stice

(2019). Ethnic differences in eating disorder prevalence, risk factors, and predictive effects of risk factors among young women. Eating Behaviors, 32, 23–30. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eatbeh.2018.11.004

Cotter

E. W.

Kelly

N. R.

Mitchell

K. S.

Mazzeo

S. E.

(2015). An investigation of body appreciation, ethnic identity, and eating disorder symptoms in Black women. Journal of Black Psychology, 41(1), 3–25. https://doi.org/10.1177/0095798413502671

Derlan

C. L.

Umaña-Taylor

A. J.

(2015). Brief report: Contextual predictors of African American adolescents’ ethnic-racial identity affirmation-belonging and resistance to peer pressure. Journal of Adolescence, 41, 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.adolescence.2015.02.002

10.

Erikson

(1968). Identity, youth and crisis. W. W. Norton Company.

11.

Forney

K. J.

Holland

L. A.

Keel

P. K.

(2012). Influence of peer context on the relationship between body dissatisfaction and eating pathology in women and men. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 45(8), 982–989. https://doi.org/10.1002/eat.22039

12.

Franko

D. L.

Striegel-Moore

R. H.

(2002). The role of body dissatisfaction as a risk factor for depression in adolescent girls: Are the differences Black and White? Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 53(5), 975–983. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-3999(02)00490-7

13.

Fritz

M. S.

MacKinnon

D. P.

(2007). Required sample size to detect the mediated effect. Psychological Science, 18(3), 233–239. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9280.2007.01882.x

14.

Galmiche

Déchelotte

Lambert

Tavolacci

M. P.

(2019). Prevalence of eating disorders over the 2000–2018 period: A systematic literature review. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 109(5), 1402–1413. https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/nqy342

15.

Grabe

Hyde

J. S.

(2006). Ethnicity and body dissatisfaction among women in the United States: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 132(4), 622–640. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.132.4.622

16.

Halliwell

(2013). The impact of thin idealized media images on body satisfaction: Does body appreciation protect women from negative effects? Body Image, 10(4), 509–514. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2013.07.004

17.

Sun

Lin

Fan

(2020). The association between body appreciation and body mass index among males and females: A meta-analysis. Body Image, 34, 10–26. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2020.03.006

18.

Ison

Kent

(2010). Social identity in eating disorders. European Eating Disorders Review, 18(6), 475–485. https://doi.org/10.1002/erv.1001

19.

Keel

P. K.

Forney

K. J.

(2013). Psychosocial risk factors for eating disorders. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 46(5), 433–439. https://doi.org/10.1002/eat.22094

20.

Keel

P. K.

Forney

K. J.

Brown

T. A.

Heatherton

T. F.

(2013). Influence of college peers on disordered eating in women and men at 10-year follow-up. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 122(1), 105–110. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0030081

21.

Kelch-Oliver

Ancis

J. R.

(2011). Black women’s body image: An analysis of culture-specific influences. Women and Therapy, 34(4), 345–358. https://doi.org/10.1080/02703149.2011.592065

22.

Kim

Kang

(2018). The effects of client–counselor racial matching on therapeutic outcome. Asia Pacific Education Review, 19(1), 103–110. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12564-018-9518-9

23.

Kroger

Martinussen

Marcia

J.E.

(2010). Identity status change during adolescence and young adulthood: a meta-analysis. Journal of adolescence, 33(5), 683–698. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.adolescence.2009.11.002

24.

Kronenfeld

L. W.

Reba-Harrelson

Von Holle

Reyes

M. L.

Bulik

C. M.

(2010). Ethnic and racial differences in body size perception and satisfaction. Body Image, 7(2), 131–136. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2009.11.002

25.

Krueger

P. M.

Reither

E. N.

(2015). Mind the gap: Race/ethnic and socioeconomic disparities in obesity. Current Diabetes Reports, 15(11), 95–99. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11892-015-0666-6

26.

Levine

M. P.

Smolak

(2016). The role of protective factors in the prevention of negative body image and disordered eating. Eating Disorders, 24(1), 39–46. https://doi.org/10.1080/10640266.2015.1113826

27.

Lovejoy

(2001). Disturbances in the social body: Differences in body image and eating problems among African American and white women. Gender and Society, 15(2), 239–261. https://doi.org/10.1177/089124301015002005

28.

MacNeill

L. P.

Best

L. A.

(2015). Perceived current and ideal body size in female undergraduates. Eating Behaviors, 18, 71–75. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eatbeh.2015.03.004

29.

Mehler

P. S.

Blalock

D. V.

Walden

Kaur

McBride

Walsh

Watts

(2018). Medical findings in 1,026 consecutive adult inpatient-residential eating disordered patients. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 51(4), 305–313. https://doi.org/10.1002/eat.22830

30.

Mehler

P. S.

Brown

(2015). Anorexia nervosa–medical complications. Journal of Eating Disorders, 3, 11–18. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40337-015-0040-8

31.

Nagel

(1994). Constructing ethnicity: Creating and recreating ethnic identity and culture. Social Problems, 41(1), 152–176. https://doi.org/10.1525/sp.1994.41.1.03x0430n

32.

Nichols

A. H.

(2020). Segregation forever. The continued underrepresentation of Black and latino undergraduates at the nation’s 101 most selective public colleges and universities. Education Trust. https://edtrust.org/resource/segregation-forever/

33.

Overstreet

N. M.

Quinn

D. M.

Agocha

V. B.

(2010). Beyond thinness: The influence of a curvaceous body ideal on body dissatisfaction in Black and White women. Sex Roles, 63(1–2), 91–103. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-010-9792-4

34.

Parent

M. C.

(2013). Handling item-level missing data: Simpler is just as good. The Counseling Psychologist, 41(4), 568–600. https://doi.org/10.1177/0011000012445176

35.

Perez

Joiner

T. E.,

Jr. (2003). Body image dissatisfaction and disordered eating in Black and White women. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 33(3), 342–350. https://doi.org/10.1002/eat.10148

36.

Petersons

Rojhani

Steinhaus

Larkin

(2000). Effect of ethnic identity on attitudes, feelings, and behaviors toward food. Eating Disorders, 8(3), 207–219. https://doi.org/10.1080/10640260008251228

37.

Phinney

J. S.

(1989). Stages of ethnic identity development in minority group adolescents. The Journal of Early Adolescence, 9(1–2), 34–49. https://doi.org/10.1177/0272431689091004

38.

Phinney

J. S.

(1992). The multigroup ethnic identity measure: A new scale for use with diverse groups. Journal of Adolescent Research, 7(2), 156–176. https://doi.org/10.1177/074355489272003

39.

Phinney

J. S.

Romero

Nava

Huang

(2001). The role of language, parents, and peers in ethnic identity among adolescents in immigrant families. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 30(2), 135–153. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1010389607319

40.

Pope

Hansen

Harvey

(2017). Examining the weight trajectory of college students. Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, 49(2), 137–141. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jneb.2016.10.014

41.

Preacher

K. J.

Hayes

A. F.

(2008). Asymptotic and resampling strategies for assessing and comparing indirect effects in multiple mediator models. Behavior Research Methods, 40(3), 879–891. https://doi.org/10.3758/BRM.40.3.879

42.

Quick

V. M.

Byrd-Bredbenner

(2014). Disordered eating, socio-cultural media influencers, body image, and psychological factors among a racially/ethnically diverse population of college women. Eating Behaviors, 15(1), 37–41. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eatbeh.2013.10.005

43.

Quiles Marcos

Y. Q.

Quiles Sebastián

M. J.

Pamies Aubalat

Botella Ausina

Treasure

(2013). Peer and family influence in eating disorders: A meta-analysis. European Psychiatry, 28(4), 199–206. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eurpsy.2012.03.005

44.

Quittkat

H. L.

Hartmann

A. S.

Düsing

Buhlmann

Vocks

(2019). Body dissatisfaction, importance of appearance, and body appreciation in men and women over the lifespan. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 10, 864. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2019.00864

45.

Rakhkovskaya

L. M.

Warren

C. S.

(2014). Ethnic identity, thin-ideal internalization, and eating pathology in ethnically diverse college women. Body Image, 11(4), 438–445. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2014.07.003

46.

Rakhkovskaya

L. M.

Warren

C. S.

(2016). Sociocultural and identity predictors of body dissatisfaction in ethnically diverse college women. Body Image, 16, 32–40. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2015.10.004

47.

Roberts

R. E.

Phinney

J. S.

Masse

L. C.

Chen

Y. R.

Roberts

C. R.

Romero

(1999). The structure of ethnic identity of young adolescents from diverse ethnocultural groups. The Journal of Early Adolescence, 19(3), 301–322. https://doi.org/10.1177/0272431699019003001

48.

Rodgers

R. F.

Berry

Franko

D. L.

(2018). Eating disorders in ethnic minorities: An update. Current Psychiatry Reports, 20(10), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-018-0938-3

49.

Rodgers

R. F.

Melioli

(2016). The relationship between body image concerns, eating disorders and internet use, Part I: A review of empirical support. Adolescent Research Review, 1(2), 95–119. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40894-015-0016-6

50.

Rogers Wood

N. A.

Petrie

T. A.

(2010). Body dissatisfaction, ethnic identity, and disordered eating among African American women. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 57(2), 141–153. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0018922

51.

Rush

E. C.

Goedecke

J. H.

Jennings

Micklesfield

Dugas

Lambert

E. V.

Plank

L. D.

(2007). BMI, fat and muscle differences in urban women of five ethnicities from two countries. International Journal of Obesity, 31(8), 1232–1239. https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ijo.0803576

52.

Sabik

N. J.

Cole

E. R.

Ward

L. M.

(2010). Are all minority women equally buffered from negative body image? Intra-ethnic moderators of the buffering hypothesis. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 34(2), 139–151. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1471-6402.2010.01557.x

53.

Shroff

Thompson

J. K.

(2006). Peer influences, body-image dissatisfaction, eating dysfunction and self-esteem in adolescent girls. Journal of Health Psychology, 11(4), 533–551. https://doi.org/10.1177/1359105306065015

54.

Sladek

M. R.

Salk

R. H.

Engeln

(2018). Negative body talk measures for Asian, Latina (o), and White women and men: Measurement equivalence and associations with ethnic-racial identity. Body Image, 25, 66–77. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2018.02.005

55.

Stojek

Fischer

Collins

(2010). Thinness and restricting expectancies mediate the influence of ethnic identity on bulimic symptoms. Personality and Individual Differences, 49(2), 102–106. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2010.03.012

56.

Swami

(2009). Body appreciation, media influence, and weight status predict consideration of cosmetic surgery among female undergraduates. Body Image, 6(4), 315–317. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2009.07.001

57.

Swami

Frederick

D. A.

Aavik

Alcalay

Allik

Anderson

Andrianto

Arora

Brännström

Cunningham

Danel

Doroszewicz

Forbes

G. B.

Furnham

Greven

C. U.

Halberstadt

Hao

Haubner

Hwang

C. S.

Zivcic-Becirevic

(2010). The attractive female body weight and female body dissatisfaction in 26 countries across 10 world regions: Results of the international body project I. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 36(3), 309–325. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167209359702

58.

Syed

Juan

M. J. D.

(2012). Birds of an ethnic feather? Ethnic identity homophily among college-age friends. Journal of Adolescence, 35(6), 1505–1514. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.adolescence.2011.10.012

59.

Tajfel

(1978). The achievement of inter-group differentiation. In Tajfel

(Ed.), Differentiation between social groups (pp. 77–100). Academic Press.

60.

Tajfel

Turner

J. C.

(1979). An integrative theory of inter-group conflict. In Austin

W. G.

Worchel

(Eds.), The social psychology of inter-group relations (pp. 33–47). Brooks/Cole.

61.

Tarrant

(2002). Adolescent peer groups and social identity. Social Development, 11(1), 110–123. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9507.00189

62.

Tylka

T. L.

Wood-Barcalow

N. L.

(2015). The body appreciation scale-2: Item refinement and psychometric evaluation. Body Image, 12, 53–67. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2014.09.006

63.

Udo

Grilo

C. M.

(2018). Prevalence and correlates of DSM-5–defined eating disorders in a nationally representative sample of US adults. Biological Psychiatry, 84(5), 345–354. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsych.2018.03.014

64.

Umaña-Taylor

A. J.

Bhanot

Shin

(2006). Ethnic identity formation during adolescence: The critical role of families. Journal of Family Issues, 27(3), 390–414. https://doi.org/10.1177/0192513x05282960

65.

Umaña‐Taylor

A. J.

Quintana

S. M.

Lee

R. M.

Cross

W. E.,

Jr. Rivas‐Drake

Schwartz

S. J.

Syed

Yip

Seaton

Ethnic and Racial Identity in the 21st Century Study Group . (2014). Ethnic and racial identity during adolescence and into young adulthood: An integrated conceptualization. Child Development, 85(1), 21–39. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.12196

66.

U. S. News . (2020). Campus ethnic diversity. US News. https://www.usnews.com/best-colleges/rankings/national-universities/campus-ethnic-diversity

67.

Viner

R. M.

Ozer

E. M.

Denny

Marmot

Resnick

Fatusi

Currie

(2012). Adolescence and the social determinants of health. Lancet (London, England), 379(9826), 1641–1652. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(12)60149-4

68.

Westmoreland

Krantz

M. J.

Mehler

P. S.

(2016). Medical complications of anorexia nervosa and bulimia. The American Journal of Medicine, 129(1), 30–37. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amjmed.2015.06.031

69.

Wood-Barcalow

N. L.

Tylka

T. L.

Augustus-Horvath

C. L.

(2010). But I like my body”: Positive body image characteristics and a holistic model for young-adult women. Body Image, 7(2), 106–116. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2010.01.001

70.

Yip

Douglass

Shelton

J. N.

(2013). Daily intragroup contact in diverse settings: Implications for Asian adolescents’ ethnic identity. Child Development, 84(4), 1425–1441. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.12038