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Relative strength of the associations of body fat, muscularity, height, and penis size dissatisfaction with psychological quality of life impairment among sexual minority men
Citation
Griffiths, S and Murray, SB and Mitchison, D and Castle, D and Mond, JM, Relative strength of the associations of body fat, muscularity, height, and penis size dissatisfaction with psychological quality of life impairment among sexual minority men, Psychology of Men & Masculinity, 20, (1) pp. 55-60. ISSN 1524-9220 (2018) [Refereed Article]
Copyright Statement
Copyright 2018 American Psychological Association
Abstract
To date, there is scant research on whether different domains of male body dissatisfaction vary in the strength
of their relationships with psychological well-being. This paucity also extends to sexual minority men (i.e.,
men who report their sexual orientation as gay or bisexual). Thus, among sexual minority men, we examined
the relative strength of the associations of four key male body dissatisfaction domains- body fat, muscularity,
height, and penis size - with psychological quality of life impairment. A geographically representative sample
of 2,733 sexual minority men completed a self-report survey, which was advertised nationwide across
Australia and New Zealand to users of a popular geosocial-networking smartphone application. Participants
completed a measure of psychological quality of life in addition to measures of body fat, muscularity, height,
and penis size dissatisfaction. Results indicated that increased dissatisfaction with each domain of male body
dissatisfaction was uniquely associated with psychological quality of life impairment. The strongest relationship
with quality of life impairment was observed for muscularity dissatisfaction (effect size small to
medium), followed by dissatisfaction with body fat (small), height (small), and penis size (very small). These
relationships were not moderated by participants’ sexual orientation (exclusively gay vs. bisexual), cultural
background, or relationship status. The findings emphasize the need to prioritize research on muscularity
dissatisfaction and related psychopathology, a category inclusive of muscularity-oriented disordered eating,
muscle dysmorphia, and anabolic steroid misuse and dependence. Contrary to common disparaging stereotypes
about men and their body image concerns, penis dissatisfaction was relatively uncommon and evidenced
the weakest association with quality of life impairment.
Item Details
Item Type: | Refereed Article |
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Keywords: | body image, body fat, muscularity, height, penis size |
Research Division: | Health Sciences |
Research Group: | Health services and systems |
Research Field: | Mental health services |
Objective Division: | Health |
Objective Group: | Public health (excl. specific population health) |
Objective Field: | Mental health |
UTAS Author: | Mond, JM (Dr Jon Mond) |
ID Code: | 127984 |
Year Published: | 2018 |
Web of Science® Times Cited: | 7 |
Deposited By: | UTAS Centre for Rural Health |
Deposited On: | 2018-08-27 |
Last Modified: | 2019-12-06 |
Downloads: | 0 |
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