Exploring the associations between muscularity teasing and eating and body image disturbances in Chinese men and women

Jinbo He; Shuqi Cui; Tianxiang Cui; Wesley R Barnhart; Jiayi Han; Yinuo Xu; Jason M Nagata

doi:10.1016/j.bodyim.2024.101697

Exploring the associations between muscularity teasing and eating and body image disturbances in Chinese men and women

Body Image. 2024 Mar 8:49:101697. doi: 10.1016/j.bodyim.2024.101697. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Jinbo He¹, Shuqi Cui², Tianxiang Cui³, Wesley R Barnhart⁴, Jiayi Han², Yinuo Xu², Jason M Nagata⁵

Affiliations

¹ School of Humanities and Social Science, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China. Electronic address: hejinbo@cuhk.edu.cn.
² School of Humanities and Social Science, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Guangdong, China.
³ Department of Psychology, University of Macau, Taipa, Macau, China.
⁴ Department of Psychology, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH, USA.
⁵ Division of Adolescent & Young Adult Medicine, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA.

PMID: 38460293
DOI: 10.1016/j.bodyim.2024.101697

Abstract

This study described muscularity teasing in both men and women and explored its associations with eating and body image disturbances in adults from China. A total of 900 Chinese adults (50% women) were recruited online. Correlation and regression analyses were conducted to examine the relationships between muscularity teasing and a battery of measures on eating and body image disturbances. Gender differences in the associations were examined. Men reported more muscularity teasing than women (31.6% men vs. 15.6% women; χ²(1,N = 900) = 31.99, p < .001). Muscularity teasing was significantly and positively correlated with all measures in both men and women. Muscularity teasing explained significant, unique variance in all measures for men and women, except for body fat dissatisfaction in women, beyond covariates (i.e., age, body mass index, and weight teasing). The relationships between muscularity teasing and eating and body image disturbances were generally stronger in men than women. Findings further suggest that muscularity teasing is an important factor related to eating and body image disturbances in men and women, but muscularity teasing might be more detrimental to men's eating behaviors and body image. Future research is needed to further explore the directionality and mechanisms of the links between muscularity teasing and eating and body image disturbances.

Keywords: Body dissatisfaction; Chinese; Disordered eating; Muscularity teasing; Weight teasing.