Liang, Barnhart, Cheng, Lu, & He. 2023

The co-occurrence and interplay between body mass index (BMI), body dissatisfaction, body appreciation, and body image inflexibility have yet to be fully understood. To address this gap, we employed network analysis (NA), a statistical approach that can uncover complex patterns of relationships between variables and identify the core symptoms of the network. A regularized partial correlation network was estimated for 1065 Chinese young adult participants (226 men, Mage = 18.90 years, SD = 0.99, range: 18–25 years; 839 women, Mage = 18.90, SD = 0.96, range: 18–23 years). We used a modularity-based algorithm to identify network communities and estimated both central symptoms and symptoms that bridge these communities. We also tested for gender differences within the identified communities. Items related to self-evaluation of the body (e.g., stomach and thigh size) from body dissatisfaction and BMI were clustered into one community, while body appreciation, body image inflexibility, and the rest of the body dissatisfaction items were clustered into distinct communities based on the measures they come from. The NA results revealed that negative opinions about body shape, coupled with body image inflexibility, might play crucial roles in bridging other communities in the network. We also observed minor gender differences in bridging effects of body appreciation. Our findings provide empirical evidence of the interconnections between BMI, body dissatisfaction, body appreciation, and body image inflexibility in Chinese young adults, highlighting the essential role of self-evaluation of the body and body image inflexibility in this network for future clinical implications.

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