Explanations of body image disturbance: A test of maturational status, negative verbal commentary, social comparison, and sociocultural hypotheses

Objective A number of hypotheses have been offered to explain the development and/or maintenance of body image disturbance. In this study, four factors which have been hypothesized to lead to body image problems were tested: maturational status (early physical development), negative verbal commentary (a history of being teased regarding physical appearance), behavioral social comparison, and awareness/internalization of sociocultural pressures. Methods: One hundred sixty-two college females completed measures designed to index these four influences. Predictors were regressed onto multiple measures of body image and two indices of eating disturbance. Results: Even with self-esteem and level of obesity removed as influences, social comparison and societal factors were significant predictors of body dissatisfaction and eating disturbance. Negative verbal commentary also explained a small part of the variance, however, maturational status did not contribute uniquely in any analysis. Discussion: The findings offer further support for emerging theories of body image and eating disturbance. © 1996 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.