TY - JOUR
T1 - Internalization of U.S. female beauty standards as a mediator of the relationship between Mexican American women's acculturation and body dissatisfaction
AU - Poloskov, Elizabeth
AU - Tracey, Terence
PY - 2013/9
Y1 - 2013/9
N2 - The relationships among acculturation, internalization of U.S. sociocultural standards of female beauty, and body dissatisfaction were examined in a sample of 211 Mexican American college women. Structural equation modeling was used to identify the paths among these three factors. Results demonstrated that there are two distinct types of body dissatisfaction: global evaluations and composite site-specific evaluations. The relationships between acculturation toward dominant U.S. culture and both types of body dissatisfaction were found to be fully mediated by internalization of U.S. standards of female beauty. There were no relationships between Mexican orientation and any of the study variables. The results from this study imply that it is important for therapists working with Mexican American female clients to assess the client's level of acculturation, examine the cultural (U.S. and Mexican) messages the client receives, and explore how these messages impact her body image.
AB - The relationships among acculturation, internalization of U.S. sociocultural standards of female beauty, and body dissatisfaction were examined in a sample of 211 Mexican American college women. Structural equation modeling was used to identify the paths among these three factors. Results demonstrated that there are two distinct types of body dissatisfaction: global evaluations and composite site-specific evaluations. The relationships between acculturation toward dominant U.S. culture and both types of body dissatisfaction were found to be fully mediated by internalization of U.S. standards of female beauty. There were no relationships between Mexican orientation and any of the study variables. The results from this study imply that it is important for therapists working with Mexican American female clients to assess the client's level of acculturation, examine the cultural (U.S. and Mexican) messages the client receives, and explore how these messages impact her body image.
KW - Acculturation
KW - Body dissatisfaction
KW - Mexican American women
KW - Thin-ideal internalization
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84884531095&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84884531095&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.bodyim.2013.05.005
DO - 10.1016/j.bodyim.2013.05.005
M3 - Article
C2 - 23809859
AN - SCOPUS:84884531095
SN - 1740-1445
VL - 10
SP - 501
EP - 508
JO - Body Image
JF - Body Image
IS - 4
ER -