• Journal of Korean Public Health Nursing
• /
• v.34 no.2
• /
• pp.289-300
• /
• 2020

Purpose: This study aimed to identify gender differences associated with weight related teasing by parents, and development of anti-fat attitudes among Korean children aged 5 to 7 years. Methods: This study used a descriptive cross-sectional design. Questionnaire interviews were conducted by enrolling 222 healthy children having normal development and living with their parents in South Korea. Results: Results showed gender and parental weight-related teasing was significantly associated with anti-fat attitudes among children. Significance of the association between parental weight-related teasing and anti-fat attitudes among kindergarten children differed according to the child's gender. Among girls, the higher level of parental weight-related teasing was associated with greater anti-fat attitude. However, parental weight-related teasing was not associated with increased anti-fat attitude among boys. Conclusion: Considering our study results, we recommend developing programs aimed towards decreasing teasing in the family environment, such as changing the gender-specific weight norms to prevent anti-fat attitudes in Korean girls.

• The Research Journal of the Costume Culture
• /
• v.30 no.4
• /
• pp.563-578
• /
• 2022

Society's emphasis on a thin body ideal may intensify an individual's negative perceptions of fatness. The purpose of the present study was to examine the relationship between sociocultural attitudes toward appearance (awareness and internalization of the female ideal) and anti-fat attitudes among middle-aged Korean women. In addition, the aim was to examine whether the body internalization of female ideals was a mediator in the proposed model. Participants included a sample of 264 middle-aged Korean women who completed a series of measures online. The following information was collected through online questionnaires: awareness and internalization of the female ideal, attitudes toward fat, body weight perception, and demographics. Data were analyzed using correlation analysis, descriptive analysis, factor analysis, and structural equation modeling. The measurement model and the structural model testing provided an acceptable fit to the data, and all proposed pathways in the research model were statistically significant. Awareness of the female ideal was significantly and positively associated with internalization, and it significantly and positively predicted both constructs of anti-fat attitudes. Additionally, awareness of the female ideal was significantly and positively indirectly associated with attitudes toward fat people-dislike and willpower mediated by internalization. Overall, these findings suggest that society's emphasis on female appearance and a thin body can ultimately result in significant stigmatization of overweight/obese individuals. This study emphasizes the importance of establishing a healthy appearance standard to reduce anti-fat prejudice.

• Research in Community and Public Health Nursing
• /
• v.32 no.2
• /
• pp.140-149
• /
• 2021

Purpose: This study aimed to identify factors (biological, psychological, interpersonal, and contextual factors) associated with the weight bias internalization of the Korean girls in early adolescence. Methods: This study used a cross-sectional design. Data was collected from 233 girls aged 12~14 years with a self-reported questionnaire. With multiple regression analysis, the factors associated with the weight bias internalization of the girls in early adolescence were analyzed. Results: Of psychosocial factors, fear to fat (anti-fat attitude) (β=.43, p<.001) was associated with the weight bias internalization of the girls in early adolescence. In addition, attachment with teachers (β=-.11, p=.029) of an interpersonal factor and perceived socio-cultural pressure regarding weight control (β=.34, p<.001) of a contextual factor were associated with the weight bias internalization of the girls in early adolescence. Conclusion: For releasing the weight bias internalization of the girls in early adolescence, decreasing anti-fat attitude and socio-cultural pressure regarding weight control should be primarily required through social efforts including community and school based interventions.