The Relationship between Age and Perceived Body Image

by

Yazmin binti Mohamad Faisal

1

Abstract

The present study examined the relationship between age and

perceived body image. The researchers used haphazard and

convenience sampling technique for selecting the sample, which

consists of 30 students from the Department of Psychology of a

private university in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Participants

stated their age as of the year 2015 before beginning to

answer the Body Image – Acceptance and Action Questionnaire.

After collecting the data, the researchers conducted Pearson’s

product-moment correlation coefficient to test the hypothesis.

The results of the study revealed no significant relationship

between age and perceived body image. The findings indicate

that there may not be age-related changes in the development

of students’ body image.

2

The Relationship between Age and Perceived Body Image

College students generally face all kinds of difficulties

on a daily basis at this phase of their lives; from assignment

deadlines to examinations and even working a part time job to

earn extra income in order to support themselves financially.

To top it off, students have to learn to adapt to the many

changes that happens in their lives, especially physical

changes, while encountering and overcoming these challenges.

In relation to this matter, college students are becoming

3

obsessed with their self-image and actions to the extent that

they feel hatred towards their own appearance. As a result,

throughout their college years, this feeling of self-loathing

influences them in making psychological and physical changes

(Solomon, Venuti, Hodges, Iannuzzelli, & Chambliss, 2001).

Both men and women are often concerned with how others

perceive of them to the extent that they feel their family,

friends, and significant others are comparing them to the same

sex that are seen in the media such as those on television,

magazines and the Internet. That being said, many young adults

are being critical of their own bodies.

Young adults’ thoughts and feelings about their body

image are crucial as it determines the quality of one’s life.

Body image refers to the mental picture a person form of their

body or appearance. A person’s beliefs, attitudes and even the

ideals in society shape our perception of body image. The

importance and meaning of physical appearance as well as

concerns about body weight and shape differs for males and

females. Many women have the mindset that being overweight is

unacceptable and viewed negatively whereas being slim is

considered as beautiful (Latha, Hedge, Bhat, Sharma, & Rai,

4

2006) not just to themselves but to the society as well. More

often than not, others see young adults as quite acceptable

although young adults are critical of their own appearances

(Solomon et al., 2001). Furthermore, high expectations on an

individual’s body image have progressively become more

extreme. According to Population Reference Bureau (2009), over

half of the world’s population are under twenty years old.

Hence, it is more likely for negative body image to increase

as they age.

In a study conducted by Paxton et al. (1991), they sought

to examine the impact of being thinner and satisfaction with

physical fitness. High school students in Melbourne, Australia

were the sample of this study where 341 females and 221 males

were administered self-report questionnaires. An experimenter

took all participants’ height and weight measurements as well.

The results of this study revealed a fair amount of body

dissatisfaction among adolescents, where more girls reported

being unhappy with their weight than boys. In addition, girls

thought that their happiness level would increase if they were

thinner. Research suggests that adolescents, between the ages

of 13 and 14, are more susceptible and vulnerable towards

5

their body image (Hallsworth, Wade, & Tiggeman, 2005;

Kostanski, Fisher, & Gullone, 2004; McCabe & Ricciardelli,

2004; Morrison, Kalin, & Morrison, 2004). However, young

adults, in college populations particulalrly, often carry over

their disapproval of body image from adolescence (Grossbard,

Lee, Neighbors, & Larimer, 2009; Hoyt & Kogan, 2001).

It is no surprise that many people encounter body image

disruption when the society emphasizes a cultural ideal of

thin females (Solomon et al., 2001). Mintz and Betz (1986)

were interested in examining realism, gender differences in

the nature and correlates of body image. The two researchers

designed a study examining one’s body satisfaction as it

corresponds to perceived versus actual body size. Data

collected indicated that college women perceive themselves as

overweight than they actually are. There was a body image

distortion among college women – the only women who view

themselves as “normal” were actually slightly underweight.

According to Fallon and Rozin (1985), women have an opinion

that men prefer thinner women than what they perceive

themselves to be. These researchers’ finding suggests that

women overestimate and misinterpret the magnitude of thinness

6

men desire. Women tend to have an inaccurate perception of

what they think men preferred. They are under the impression

that the body size males prefer is actually smaller than what

males had reported. As a result, this jeopardizes the self-

esteem of many girls as they compare between their own bodies

and those of the same sex, typically television stars that

were selected for their sleek body types (Solomon et al.,

2001). Due to these inflexible and demanding standards, it has

been found by many researchers that females, in particular,

are highly dissatisfied with the appearance of their own

bodies (Solomon et al., 2001).

On the other hand, men were once thought to be unaffected

by body image dissatisfaction but are now believed to share a

fair concern for developing this disorder (Kostanski et al.,

2004). It’s not only women whom feel pressured to have an

ideal body, men are beginning to experience the same feelings

too. According to Paxton et al. (1991), boys reported that

being thinner would decrease their happiness negatively.

Similarly, Page and Allen (1995) obtained results to support

the notion that men are dissatisfied with being too thin.

Early evidence provided from results obtained by Lundy and

7

Schlafer (1959) stated that males oftentimes feel the need to

gain weight. Some men find it important to have a good

physique, with fine muscle tone. On that account, men feel

inadequate when physical goals are not met and this has been

linked to increasing rates of eating disorders (Solomon et

al., 2001). Consequently, individuals attempt to escape their

feelings of disappointment and failure when they fall short of

achieving their unobtainable goals (Kashdan & Breen, 2007).

Hoyt and Kogan (2001) investigated on college students’ body

image perception and relationship satisfaction. Both male and

female college students prominently idealized various body

parts. It was reported that some women and particularly

younger college-aged men reported body dissatisfaction with

muscular models and are seeking treatments for reported

instances of it (Hoyt & Kogan, 2001).

Both male and female young adults not only frequently

misinterpret what the opposite sex looks for in them, but also

often have distorted self-perceptions. In a study conducted by

Cohn and Adler (1992), body image perceptions and satisfaction

among college students was investigated. The authors of this

study examined 87 female and 118 male participants’ body

8

figure, what they perceived to be the perfect figure and what

they perceived to be the most attractive image to same-sex as

well as opposite-sex peers. It was found that what they

believed was regarded as attractive fell between their

supposed “peer ideals” and their actual body size. Based on

the results of this study, it was not only women who

misinterpreted what men preferred. Men felt a need for a

larger physique and thought the opposite sex preferred this

but they did not find this attractive. In a study conducted by

Leone, Partridge and Maurer-Starks (2011), the authors of this

study sought to examine psychobehavioral attributes of college

students with respect to body image. The findings showed that

participants were preoccupied with body weight and body image

when they are concerned about their muscle tone. However, the

authors of this study concluded that gender is not a

significant factor of body image dissatisfaction.

Despite the long history and numerous research on body

image, there is still a lack of literature on what role it can

play in young adults, mainly college students’ perceptions. In

the present study, the researchers aim to study the

relationship between age and perceived body image. The

9

researchers were particularly concerned with perceived body

image in a collegiate sample in Malaysia. Over the past 30

years of body image research, the trends have largely

supported the belief that women in the Western world and some

in Asian cultures are more judgmental of their bodies (Cash,

Morrow, Hrabosky, & Perry, 2004). The proposed term for the

adaptive cultural phenomenon – “normative discontent” suggests

that it is expected and normal for women in these cultures to

be so judgmental of their bodies and bodies of others

(Kostanski et al., 2004).

There have been numerous research on body image in

Western cultures but little in Asian cultures. In addition,

Wilde, Emery and Simons (2001) pointed out that there was lack

of studies outside the Western countries and added that

distorted body image may be absent among society from non-

Western cultures. Thus, the researchers proposed the current

study to be conducted in Malaysia. Moreover, college students

are typically young, liberal and intelligent; hence this age

is an interesting sample to study. However, to avoid gender

bias, both male and female were included in this study.

Hence, the research question posed by the researchers

10

was: “What is the relationship between age and perceived body

image?” Therefore, the researchers hypothesized that there is

a positive correlation between age and perceived body image.

Method

Design

The design used for the present study was a correlational

design with two variables; age and perceived body image. Age

was measured by how old the participant is. On the other hand,

The Body Image – Acceptance and Action Questionnaire (BI-AAQ)

was used to measure participants’ perceived body image.

Participants

The study was conducted at the Department of Psychology

of a private university in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The sample

of the current study consisted of 30 participants, young

adults aged 20 to 27 years old, both male and female.

Participants who completed the questionnaire were all Year 1,

Bachelor of Psychology (Hons) students from the Introduction

to Psychology 2 (PSY 112) lecture class. Haphazard sampling

technique was used, whereby any students that passed by the

researchers in the lecture hall became the study’s

11

participants. There were also students who volunteered to

become participants, thus resulting in a convenience sample.

The average age of participants were 20.93 (SD = 1.68),

where participants were of ages 20 (53.33%), 21 (33.33%), 22

(3.33%), 23 (3.33%), 26 (3.33%), and 27 (3.33%).

Materials

Participants completed two questionnaires assessing age

and perceived body image. Before beginning to answer BI-AAQ,

participants stated their age as of the year 2015. The BI-AAQ

consisted of 29 items rated on a 7-point Likert scale with

responses ranging from 1 being ‘Never True’ to 7 being ‘Always

True’.

This questionnaire asked respondents to indicate how they

felt about their weight, shape and body image. It was designed

to measure an individual’s acceptance on negative thoughts and

feelings towards his or her body. Examples of items in this

questionnaire are, “I would gladly sacrifice important things

in my life to be able to stop worrying about my weight”, “I

will have better control over my life if I can control my

negative thoughts about my body” and “I care too much about my

weight and body shape.” Items from the questionnaire were

12

reverse-scored where appropriate which then added up to the

total score for body image ranging from 29 to 203. Higher

scores represent higher body image acceptance. (See “Appendix

A” and “Appendix B” for a sample of the questionnaires)

Procedure

The researchers distributed the informed consent form as

well as the questionnaires to the participants in the lecture

hall during PSY 112 lecture’s break time. In less than 10

minutes, participants completed the questionnaire in the

lecture hall and returned it to the researcher.

Results

The BI-AAQ yielded a total score, with highest score of

199 and the lowest score was 84. The results showed a mean

score of 151.70 (SD = 26.33).

The research question asked whether there was a

relationship between age and perceived body image. Pearson’s

product-moment correlation coefficient (Pearson’s r) was used

to test this research question to examine the correlation

between the variables as a measure of how weak or strong the

direction and magnitude of the two variables is to each other.

Table 1

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Correlation Between the Variables (n = 30)

Pearson Correlation Sig. (2-tailed)

Age 1 .736*

Perceived Body

Image

.064 .736*

Note *p > .05

Results of the statistical test showed that there is no

significant correlation between age and perceived body image,

r(28) = .06, p > .05. Therefore, the researchers fail to

reject the null hypothesis.

Discussion

This study assessed the relationship between age and

perceived body image. A reliable and valid instrument BI-AAQ

was used to measure how college students perceive their body

image, whether positively or negatively. Higher scores were

representative of positive body image while lower scores

showed negative perceived body image. The researchers thought

that as individuals grow older, their perceptions of their

appearance would improve. However, based on the data

collected, the hypothesis was not supported. Results showed

that there is no significant correlation between age and

14

perceived body image. Based on the results obtained, it can be

concluded that it was an extremely weak correlation. A 20-

year-old participant could score 68 points higher than a 26-

year-old participant whom scored 124 on his or her body image

questionnaire. At the same time, another 20-year-old

participant scored one point higher than the 26-year-old

participant. How does this suggest the differences of

individuals’ self-perceptions from the other person whom is

older or younger?

Contrary from the observations made in previous studies,

it is still uncertain whether growing older would change an

individual’s self-perception positively. Eight out of 16

participants’ responses that were 20 years old scored higher

than 150 to as high as 192 on body image score, some beating

the score of 164 from a 27-year-old participant. This finding

suggests that younger students are capable of having healthy

thought patterns even when they do or do not have the ideal

figure. The present study’s finding is consistent with earlier

findings from a study by Jaffee and Lutter (1995). It was

reported that those with high body image were less preoccupied

with their weight and worried less about it.

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Since the present study did not find a correlation

between age and perceived body image, this could be a Type II

error as the present sample had very few participants whom

were older than 22 years old. Therefore, there might be a

relationship that exists between the two variables if there

were more number of older participants.

Results of the present study found that age does not

change perceived body image, positively or negatively. Younger

and older adults in the collegiate sample exhibited somewhat

conflicting patterns of perceived body image compared to past

studies, thus the results may have differed due to cultural

differences. The present study was conducted in Malaysia,

which is considered as a collectivistic culture. Collectivist

culture emphasizes on the needs or goals of the family and

group as a whole, above individual needs – such as those in

Asia, Africa, South America and Central America. On the other

hand, those in Western Europe and North America tend to be

individualistic – a culture that emphasizes on the needs of

the individual rather than the group as a whole. Triandis

(1994) suggests three key factors to determine whether it is

an individualistic or collectivistic culture one of which is

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heterogeneity. Societies where members share the same

language, societal customs and religion are considered as

homogenous, whereby they tend to be intolerant towards those

who go off from the norm. On the other hand, societies where

two or more cultures coexist are culturally diversed, like

Malaysia, thus allows more individual expression. The study by

Paxton et al. (1991) was conducted in Australia where there is

a vast difference of culture compared to Malaysia, thus

resulting in different outcomes of the study.

Most of the past studies had more than two variables.

Results from the current study may have varied due to the

absence of another variable. For instance, Leone et al. (2011)

studied the psychobehavioral attributes of freshman and senior

college students with respect to body image. The present study

only focused on Year 1 Psychology students whom are still

considered as freshman. Thus, this may have affected the

different results obtained.

Limitations

As with any study, there are bound to be weaknesses in

the present study conducted.

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First, the questionnaire was one of the limitations. Although

the BI-AAQ was a reliable and valid instrument as mentioned

before, but the questionnaires were too long. There were 29

items on the questionnaire and there was a high probability of

participants getting bored and answering the questions to

merely finish the questionnaire and return it to the

researchers. A common limitation in any research is the

honesty of respondents. A few possible forms of bias may have

influenced the true intention or feelings of participants when

responding to the questions. Participants may have given

socially desirable responses to questions they were

uncomfortable with. For example, participants may have rated

the truth ‘2’ being “Very Seldom True” for this statement:

“Worrying about my weight does not get in my way” when in

actual fact it does relate to how they really feel. However,

to control for this, participants were informed beforehand in

the informed consent form that their responses were anonymous

and that it will remain confidential.

Furthermore, a correlational study design does not allow

for causation to be concluded. Therefore, it is not possible

to determine whether if it is true that age will lead to

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negative or positive perceived body image. Future studies may

replicate this study with similar variables to find the cause

and effect of this area of research. Finally, a non-

probability sample was used at one university in Kuala Lumpur.

The haphazard and convenient sampling techniques may not be

representative of all college students with regards to body

image, which limits the generalizability of this study. In

addition, the researchers were limited to participants from

Department of Psychology only. Future studies might involve a

larger sample drawn for more varied populations. In addition,

further studies are also needed to explore the development of

students’ body image with respect to their age, including

factors that lead to positive body image.

Implications

Although the researchers did not find what the study

intended to find, but this area of research is still

meaningful. There is a continuing need of understanding better

on how college students perceive their appearance or bodies

and how it reflects on their behavior. Individuals with

distorted perception of body image may choose unhealthy

behaviors to control or to react on regarding their weight

19

when unrealistic goals are not met. It is important to

acknowledge this issue, especially for health educators, and

address the students to develop positive perception of their

body. Health educators should also encourage students to

recognize their personal strengths instead of things related

to their physique.

Although further improvement is needed to gain a better

understanding of students’ body image perception, the present

study’s findings indicate that there may not be age-related

changes in the development of students’ body image. Based on

the findings, perceived body image did not differ much between

students who were younger than the other. Thus, age is not a

significant factor of students’ positive or negative

perception of body image.

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ideal body shapes: Distorted views among Caucasian college

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(2006). Body image, self-esteem and depression in female

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Mental Health, 2(3), 78-84.

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Appendix A

Age Questionnaire

Directions: Please state your age as of 2015

Age:

25

Appendix B

The Body Image - Acceptance and Action Questionnaire (BI-AAQ)

Directions: Below you will find a list of statements. Please

rate the truth of each statement as it applies to you. Use the

following rating scale to make your choices. For instance, if

you believe a statement is ‘Always True,’ you would write a

‘7’ next to that statement.

_____1. I get on with my life even when I feel bad about my

body.

26

Never

true

Very

seldom

true

Seldom

true

Sometimes

true

Frequentl

y true

Almost

always

true

Always

true1 2 3 4 5 6 7

_____2. Worrying about my weight makes it difficult for me to

live a life that I value.

_____3. I would gladly sacrifice important things in my life

to be able to stop

worrying about my weight.

_____4. I care too much about my weight and body shape.

_____5. How I feel about my body has very little to do with

the daily choices I make.

_____6. Many things are more important to me than feeling

better about my weight.

_____7. There are many things I do to try and stop feeling bad

about my body weight and shape.

_____8. I worry about not being able to control bad feelings

about my body.

_____9. I do not need to feel better about my body before

doing things that are important to me.

_____10. I don’t do things that might make me feel fat.

_____11. I shut down when I feel bad about my body shape or

weight.

_____12. My worries about my weight do not get in the way of

my success.

_____13. I can move toward important goals, even when feeling

bad about my body.

_____14. There are things I do to distract myself from

thinking about my body shape.

_____15. My thoughts and feelings about my body weight and

shape must change

before I can take important steps in my life.

27

_____16. My thoughts about my body shape and weight do not

interfere with the way I want to live.

_____17. I cannot stand feeling fat.

_____18. Worrying about my body takes up too much of my time.

_____19. If I start to feel fat, I try to think about

something else.

_____20. Worrying about my weight does not get in my way.

_____21. Before I can make any serious plans, I have to feel

better about my body.

_____22. I will have better control over my life if I can

control my negative thoughts about my body.

_____23. I avoid putting myself in situations where I might

feel bad about my body.

_____24. To control my life, I need to control my weight.

_____25. My worries and fears about my weight are true.

_____26. Feeling fat causes problems in my life.

_____27. I do things to control my weight so I can stop

worrying about the way my body looks.

_____28. When I start thinking about the size and shape of my

body, it’s hard to do anything else.

_____29. My relationships would be better if my body weight

and/or shape did not bother me.

28

Copyright: © Emily K. Sandoz, University of Mississippi.

Appendix C

SPSS Output

Descriptive StatisticsMean Std.

DeviationN

Age 20.9333 1.68018 30Perceived_Body_Image

151.7000 26.33491 30

CorrelationsAge Perceived_B

ody_Image

Age

Pearson Correlation

1 .064

Sig. (2-tailed) .736N 30 30

Perceived_Body_Image

Pearson Correlation

.064 1

29

Sig. (2-tailed) .736N 30 30

30