Body dissatisfaction from adolescence to young adulthood: Findings from a 10-year longitudinal study
Open accessAbstract
Given mixed findings regarding the unique trajectories of female and male adolescents' body dissatisfaction over time, comprehensive longitudinal examinations are needed. This 10-year longitudinal, population-based study, with 1902 participants from diverse ethnic/racial and socioeconomic backgrounds in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metropolitan area, examined changes in body dissatisfaction from adolescence to young adulthood. Results revealed that: (a) female and male participants' body dissatisfaction increased between middle and high school, (b) body dissatisfaction increased further during the transition to young adulthood, and (c) this increase was associated with an increase in BMI over time, such that the upward trend in body dissatisfaction became nonsignificant when BMI was controlled. These results highlight a trend in which diverse female and male youth are increasingly dissatisfied with their bodies as their BMI increases from middle school to young adulthood, and emphasize the need for targeted prevention efforts to intervene in this trajectory and mitigate potential harm.
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The intensity of body dissatisfaction increases throughout adolescence.
“Due to these changes, the intensity of body dissatisfaction (i.e., the subjective negative evaluation of one's figure or body parts) increases throughout this developmental period (e.g., Bucchianeri, Arikian, Hannan, Eisenberg, & Neumark-Sztainer, 2013).”
From The reciprocal and indirect relationships between passive Facebook use, comparison on Facebook, and adolescents' body dissatisfaction (2017) · cites this paper as Bucchianeri et al., 2013
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- Authors
- Bucchianeri, M. M., Arikian, A. J., Hannan, P. J., Eisenberg, M. E., & Neumark-Sztainer, D.
- Affiliations
- University of Minnesota (US)
- Corresponding author
- Bucchianeri, Michaela M.
- ORCID
- Eisenberg, Marla E.
- Venue
- Body Image
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2013-01
- Volume
- 10
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 1-7
- ISSN
- 1740-1445 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC3814026
- OpenAlex
- W2083629688
- Cited by
- 615
- References
- 46
- Citations by year
- 2026: 44 · 2025: 52 · 2024: 69 · 2023: 82 · 2022: 73 · 2021: 51 · 2020: 51 · 2019: 43 · 2018: 45 · 2017: 35 · 2016: 20 · 2015: 31 · 2014: 13 · 2013: 5 · 2012: 1
- FWCI
- 18.13
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- europepmc.org
- Locations
- Body Image (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (R01HL084064)
- National Institute of Mental Health (T32MH082761)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Eating Disorders and Behaviors
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Body Image and Dysmorphia Studies
- Health Sciences › Nursing › Nutrition and Dietetics › Nutrition, Health and Food Behavior
- Keywords
- body dissatisfaction, adolescence, early adulthood, sex differences, body mass index, BMI trajectories, transition to young adulthood, longitudinal change, prevention
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Adult, Age Factors, Body Image, Body Weight, Female, Food Preferences, Health Surveys, Humans, Longitudinal Studies, Male, Minnesota, Motor Activity, Surveys and Questionnaires, Sex Factors, Cohort Studies, Body Mass Index, Young Adult, Body Dysmorphic Disorders
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