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A network analysis comparison of central determinants of body dissatisfaction among pregnant and non-pregnant women

journal contribution
posted on 2020-03-01, 00:00 authored by Matthew Fuller-TyszkiewiczMatthew Fuller-Tyszkiewicz, Jaclyn BroadbentJaclyn Broadbent, B Richardson, B Watson, Anna KlasAnna Klas, Helen Skouteris
The objective of the present study was to compare body dissatisfaction of pregnant (n = 1245 overall; n = 320 trimester 1, n = 497 trimester 2, n = 428 trimester 3) and non-pregnant (n = 547) women in terms of: (a) global dissatisfaction, (b) dissatisfaction with specific body parts/features, and (c) strength of inter-relation among these areas of dissatisfaction. While ANOVAs revealed small group differences in overall body dissatisfaction ratings for appearance and function, more sizable differences were observed at the item level. Network analysis showed that the dissatisfaction items clustered together in similar ways across groups, but that the relative importance of these items for the networks differed by group. In particular, dissatisfaction with chest was much less connected to other areas of dissatisfaction for pregnant women, whilst dissatisfaction with shape and/or weight were more strongly connected to other items for this group. Body function items were less important in the network for non-pregnant women. Findings support earlier qualitative findings suggesting that pregnant women are concerned with both appearance and functioning of their bodies. More broadly, information gleaned at the item level highlights the value in exploring areas of dissatisfaction that may increase understanding of global dissatisfaction ratings.

History

Journal

Body image

Volume

32

Pagination

111 - 120

Publisher

Elsevier

Location

Amsterdam, The Netherlands

ISSN

1740-1445

Language

eng

Publication classification

C1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal