Correlates of Ideal Body Size Among Black and White Adolescents

Cultural differences have been found in body image perceptions among Black and White adolescents, however little is known about the factors associated with perceptions of an ideal body size (IBS). This study examined differences in correlates of IBS among 265 Black (116 girls and 62 boys) and White (63 girls and 24 boys) adolescents. IBS for White girls and boys was related to perceptions of how their parents wanted them to look, while IBS for Black girls was related to perception of how peers look and would like to look. IBS for Black boys was significantly related to perceptions of their current size, how peers would like to look, how parents think they look, and depressive symptoms. Findings suggest cultural differences in the factors related to body image perceptions and have implications for educational programs promoting healthy body image development among Black and White adolescents.Assistant Professor, Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, University of Kansas Medical Center. Received PhD in Counseling Psychology from University of Missouri-Kansas City. Research interests include environmental and cultural correlates of obesity, obesity prevention, nicotine and tobacco addiction, and health promotion interventions.Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatrics, University of Minnesota. Received medical degree from Christian Medical College, Punjab, India, and Master of Public Health from University of Kansas School of Medicine. Research interests include diet and physical activity behaviors, role of the environment in obesity and obesity prevention, especially among children and adolescents.Research Associate, Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, University of Kansas Medical Center. Completing PhD in clinical psychology from University of Kansas and Master of Public Health from University of Kansas School of Medicine. Research interests include obesity prevention, smoking cessation, and positive psychology.Assistant Professor and Director, MPH Program, Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, University of Kansas Medical Center. Received MPH from Boston University and PhD in epidemiology from the University of California/San Diego State University. Research interests include behavioral epidemiology of tobacco use among adolescents and ethnic minorities.Professor of Medicine and School of Public Health, University of Illinois at Chicago, Associate Director, Midwest Center for Health Services and Policy Research, Jesse Brown VA Medical Center, Director, Section of Health Promotion Research, Department of Medicine, University of Medicine, University of Illinois at Chicago. Received PhD in clinical psychology from Long Island University. Research interests include obesity prevention, binge eating, and cultural differences in eating behavior.Medical Epidemiologist, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Received MD and MPH from Tongji Medical University, Wuhan, China and PhD from University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine. Research interests include the etiology, epidemiology, and prevention ofobesity, metabolic syndrome, and diabetes.Research Instructor, Department of Preventive Medicine and Public Health, University of Kansas Medical Center. Received MBBS from Allama Iqbal Medical College, Punjab University, Lahore, Pakistan and MPH from University of Kansas Medical Center. Research interests include smoking cessation, database design, implementation, data management and analysis, and use of information technology in health care settings.Professor Department of Medicine and Office of Clinical Research, University of Minnesota School of Medicine. Received MD/MPH from Tulane University and MS from Harvard School of Public Health. Research interests include disparities in healthcare; smoking cessation among underserved populations, specifically African Americans; diet, nutrition, obesity, and physical activity.