25 girls and 25 boys between the ages of 5 and 7 years indicated their current and desired body size on Collins' figures. The children's weight and height were measured, and the Body Mass Index was calculated. 52% of girls and 44% of boys expressed a wish to become thinner in relation to perception of their own body. Significant sex differences were found in selection of the ideal figure: girls showed greater preferences for a thinner figure than boys. There was a significant correlation between perception of current figure and Body Mass Index for boys but not for girls.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
CollinsM. E. (1991) Body figure perceptions and preferences among préadolescent children. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 10, 199–208.
2.
CullariS.TrubillaR. S. (1989) Body-image distortion in normal-weight college women. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 68, 1195–1198.
3.
HamiltonK.WallerG. (1993) Media influences on body size estimation in anorexia and bulimia', an experimental study. British Journal of Psychiatry, 162, 830–837.
4.
HammerL. D.KraemerH. C.WilsonD. M.RitterP. L.DornbuschS. M. (1991) Standardized percentile curves of body-mass index for children and adolescents. American Journal of Diseases of Children, 145, 259–263.
5.
HillA. J.DraperE.StackJ. (1994) A weight on children's minds: Body shape dissatisfaction at 9 years old. International Journal of Obesity, 18, 383–389.
6.
KoffE.RierdanJ. (1991) Perceptions of weight and attitudes toward eating in early adolescent girls. Journal of Adolescent Health, 12, 307–312.
7.
RollandK.FarnillD.GriffithsR. A. (1996) Children's perceptions of their current and ideal body sizes and Body Mass Index. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 82, 651–656.
8.
SassonA.LewinC.RothD. (1995) Dieting behaviour and eating attitudes in Israeli children. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 17, 67–72.
9.
SundayS. R.HalmiK. A.WerdannL.LeveyC. (1992) Comparison of body size estimation and Eating Disorder Inventory scores in anorexia and bulimia patients with obese, and restrained and unrestrained controls. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 11, 133–149.
10.
ThompsonJ. K. (1995) Assessment of body image. In AllisonD. B. (Ed.), Handbook of assessment methods for eating behaviors and weight-related problems. Newbury Park, CA: Sage. Pp. 119–148.
11.
TiggemannM.WilsonbarrettE. (1998) Children's figure ratings—relationship to self-esteem and negative stereotyping. International Journal of Baling Disorders, 23, 83–88.
12.
WilliamsonD. A.GleavesD. H.WatkinsP. C.SchlundtD. G. (1993) Validation of the self-ideal body size discrepancy as a measure of body dissatisfaction. Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioural Assessment, 15, 57–68.
