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Imagine two "obese" women: One has weight in her hips + thighs; the other in her abdomen. Are they equally stigmatized?
In work just accepted at SPPS we (me Steve Neuberg) focus on an under-explored variable in fat stigma: BODY SHAPE
( https://psyarxiv.com/b6t7a/ ) A
on the work...
In work just accepted at SPPS we (me Steve Neuberg) focus on an under-explored variable in fat stigma: BODY SHAPE
( https://psyarxiv.com/b6t7a/ ) A
on the work...
To test the impact of body shape on fat stigma, we FIRST created a new stimulus set. (Most have targets w increasing weight in the gut.)
The BODy Size + Shape (BODSS) set varies shape (+ sex, age). E.g., 2 overweight young women w same weight/height (BMI*) but different shapes.
The BODy Size + Shape (BODSS) set varies shape (+ sex, age). E.g., 2 overweight young women w same weight/height (BMI*) but different shapes.
*Body Mass Index is flawed; we acknowledge that. While we're on *s, see fn#1: we acknowledge issues in compassionate language. Some advocate for person-first language (e.g., "ppl with obesity"); others suggest this medicalizes fat (see rx by Angela Meadows). We do our best.
In 3 samples varying in P ethnicity/society (US MTurk; 50% White US + 50% Black US; India), Ps viewed + responded to 7 female figures varying in size ("underweight", "healthy weight", 2 "overweight" varying in shape, 3 "obese" varying in shape). We measured stigma toward targets.
Major findings: (1) Over + above BMI, shape
stigma: Ps stigmatized "overweight" + "obese" females w fat in hips/thighs less than those w fat in gut. E.g., Of 2 same-BMI "overweight" targets, that w. more hip/thigh fat was viewed positively; that w. gut fat was viewed negatively.
stigma: Ps stigmatized "overweight" + "obese" females w fat in hips/thighs less than those w fat in gut. E.g., Of 2 same-BMI "overweight" targets, that w. more hip/thigh fat was viewed positively; that w. gut fat was viewed negatively.
(2) Counter to assumptions, more fat isn't always more stigmatized: Women were stigmatized MORE when (a) "under-" vs "healthy-weight", (b) "overweight" w gut fat vs "obese" w hip/thigh fat. Note (b) underscores the importance of body shape again. Findings hold XS P ethnic./soc.
Note: (1) Our theory/findings don't justify stigma. We try to explain it. Only once we understand what something is--as nasty as it may be--can we do anything about it. (2) This doesn't mean men's shapes don't matter. We focused on women for a few reasons incl: space concerns...
women may face more fat stigma, + the argument for women's shapes influencing stigma is straightforward. (3) There are some P. ethnicity/society differences. E.g., Indian Ps seem more positive toward smaller bodies (which might reflect genuine anthropometric differences/norms).
Finally (5) this might be among the first empirical work on the importance of body shape in fat stigma, but this isn't a wildly new idea. Again, evo anthro folks show this (e.g., Swami, Gaulin, Lassek, Sugiayama, @GJasienska). But--importantly--
--we acknowledge *women know* that shape matters in social perception/fat stigma. E.g., see women's magazines (e.g., articles on "dress for your shape", "are you an apple or pear?"), work by fat activists/body pos folks, + supermodel @ashleygraham even mentions this in her book!
