Development of Perceived Body Size and Dieting Awareness in Young Girls

Abstract

To examine longitudinally figure-rating preferences and dieting awareness in young girls a sample of 40 Australian girls, ages 5 to 7 years (M = 6.5, SD = 0.9), were recruited from two single-sex private schools in Adelaide. Girls were tested at both Time 1 (mid 2002) and Time 2 (late 2003), approximately 16 months apart. Using the Children's Figure Rating Scale of Tiggemann and Wilson-Barrett, girls indicated current and ideal figure preferences. Their understanding of the concept of dieting was assessed using the Dieting Awareness measure, developed by Lowes and Tiggemann. At Time 1, younger girls preferred a larger ideal figure than the current figure, relative to older girls. At Time 2, however, this age difference had decreased, and all girls preferred a thinner ideal figure. In addition, there was a significant increase in Dieting Awareness from Time 1 to Time 2.