Development and psychometric assessment of the Sociocultural Influences on Exercise Behaviours in Adolescents Questionnaire.

OBJECTIVES: This research aimed to construct and psychometrically test a measure of multiple sociocultural dimensions (i.e. family, peers, media) theoretically associated with exercise behaviours/attitudes in adolescents; the Sociocultural Influences on Exercise Behaviours in Adolescents Questionnaire (SIEBAQ). METHODS AND MEASUREMENT: Part 1 of this study focused on measure construction and psychometric testing, involving item generation and exploratory factor analysis (EFA) to refine the item pool, with 905 adolescents (Mage 13.66 years (SD = 0.94); girls = 442). Part 2 sought to explore the convergent validity of the SIEBAQ (n = 846; n = 414 girls). RESULTS: EFA resulted in a 47-item measure with a nine-factor structure (including social media modelling, parent exercise expectations, peer co-participation; α = 0.72-0.92). Correlations revealed weak-moderate significant relationships between the SIEBAQ and related constructs (e.g. compulsive exercise, sociocultural attitudes towards appearance). Regression analyses with the SIEBAQ identified social media modelling of exercise as a significant predictor of compulsive exercise in boys and girls. Proving exercise ability to significant others also significantly predicted compulsive exercise outcomes. CONCLUSION: This newly developed measure holds promise. Further psychometric testing and validation of the SIEBAQ is the recommended next step to confirm the measure's nine-factor structure identified through EFA.

Validation of an adapted Italian-language version of the Sociocultural Attitudes Toward Appearance Questionnaire-3 (SATAQ-3), within a female population: the Sociocultural Attitudes Toward Appearance Questionnaire - Social Media (SATAQ-SM).

Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance Questionnaire-Social Media (SATAQ-SM) is a self-administered questionnaire for the evaluation of social media pressure and internalization of beauty standards. This study aims to validate the SATAQ-SM an adapted Italian version of the Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance Questionnaire third version (SATAQ-3). Confirmatory factor analysis was used to investigate whether the empirical data fitted the four-factor structure of SATAQ-3. Assessment of goodness-of-fit was based on standard model fit criteria: relative χ2 value (χ2/df), Root Mean-Squared Error of Approximation (RMSEA), Comparative Fit Index (CFI) and Tucker-Lewis Index (TLI). Internal consistency was assessed using McDonald's omega. Criterion validity was calculated by correlating the SATAQ-SM factors scores with the total score of the Rosenberg self-esteem scale (RSES) and Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-26). Four-hundred and eighty-five females agreed to participate in the study. The four-factor model appears to be confirmed by the fit indices: χ2/df = 3.73, RMSEA = 0.07, CFI = 0.99 and TLI = 0.99. All the items defining the four factors had a factor loading of ≥0.40. McDonald's omega of the entire questionnaire was equal to 0.95 and for the four subscales it did not assume values lower than 0.81. The correlations between the factor score of SATAQ-SM and the RSES were all negative and statistically relevant (p < 0.001); the correlations between the scores of the SATAQ-SM subscales and the total score of the EAT-26 are all positive and statistically significant. SATAQ-SM demonstrated good psychometric properties to assess the influence of social media on body image perception related to social media.

The Mediating Effect of Negative Appearance Evaluation on the Relationship Between Eating Attitudes and Sociocultural Attitudes Toward Appearance.

Objective: Body-image disturbance and eating disorders are significant physical and mental health problems in China. Attitudes toward the body are thought to work in conjunction with other established risk factors for dietary pathology, which include body dissatisfaction, dieting, and negative effects. Negative appearance evaluation may be valuable for extending our understanding of measuring factors and potential causal relationships associated with body image and eating problems. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the association between negative appearance evaluation and a combination of eating attitudes and sociocultural attitudes toward appearance and the mediating effect of negative appearance evaluation on the relationship between eating attitudes and sociocultural attitudes toward appearance. Methods: We invited 339 Chinese adults to undergo the Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-26), the Fear of Negative Appearance Evaluation Scale (FNAES), and the Sociocultural Attitudes toward Appearance (SATAQ-3) scale, and used AMOS 24.0 for model construction and mediating effects testing. Results: There was a significant positive correlation between EAT-26 scores and FNAES (p < 0.001) and SATAQ-3 scores (p < 0.001), and all dimensions except internalization general were significantly positively correlated (p < 0.05). There was a significant positive correlation between FNAES and SATAQ-3 scores for all dimensions (p < 0. 01). There was no significant direct effect of eating attitude on sociocultural attitude toward appearance; however, there was a significant mediating effect of fear of negative appearance evaluation. Conclusion: Our results demonstrate that negative appearance evaluation fully mediates the relationship between eating attitudes and sociocultural attitudes toward appearance. An individual's attitude toward eating affects negative body perceptions and thus their perception of their own body shape. Our exploration of the specific effects of eating attitudes on body perception provides a psychological basis for guidance and developing interventions regarding attitudes toward the body.

Psychometric properties of measures of sociocultural influence and internalization of appearance ideals across eight countries.

The aim of the current study was to examine the psychometric properties of two well-established measures of sociocultural influence and internalization of the thin/low body fat ideal and muscular ideal. Data from 6272 emerging adults (68.9 % female), aged 18-30 years from Australia, Belgium, Canada, China, Italy, Japan, Spain, and the U.S. were included in this study. Participants completed measures of pressure from mother, fathers, peers, and media, to both increase muscles and lose weight, as well as internalization of the thin/low body fat ideal and muscular ideal. Overall, support for partial invariance was found across the scales. In addition, group level differences were found between countries as well as along demographic factors including gender, age, body mass index, and socioeconomic status. These findings make an important contribution by identifying these scales as useful tools that will support future cross-country and cross-cultural examinations of explanatory models of the development of body image and eating concerns grounded within sociocultural theories.

Parental Perspectives and Experiences in Relation to Lifestyle-Related Practices in the First Two Years of a Child's Life: A Qualitative Study in a Disadvantaged Neighborhood in The Netherlands.

The first two years of a child's life are a critical period in preventing several lifestyle-related health problems. A qualitative study was conducted to explore parental experiences and perspectives in relation to lifestyle-related child-rearing practices in order to minimize risk factors at an early stage. Data were collected through interviews (n = 25) and focus groups (n = 4) with parents of children aged 0-2 years, in a disadvantaged neighborhood in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Results showed that parents were often uncertain about a number of lifestyle-related practices. Ambiguity also appeared regarding the parents' intentions to engage in certain practices and what they were able to achieve in everyday life. In addition, parents experienced strong sociocultural influences from their family, which interfered with their ability to make their own decisions on lifestyle-related practices. Parents also expressed a need for peer-support and confirmation of their practices. Future studies should focus on supporting parents in their parental practices during the first two years of their child's life. Any such study should take into account the specific sociocultural context accompanying lifestyle-related parental practices.

Validation of an Italian version of the Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance Questionnaire-4-Revised (SATAQ-4R) on non-clinical Italian women and men.

Appearance-ideal internalization and appearance pressures are empirically-supported risk factors for body image disturbance and disordered eating in Western countries. Such a relationship has emerged also in the Italian context, where high rates of body dissatisfaction and disordered eating are present. The Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance Questionnaire (SATAQ) and its revisions are among the most commonly used instruments to assess the role of sociocultural influences on body image. Two studies were conducted to examine the psychometric properties of the female (Study 1, N = 732) and male (Study 2, N = 364) Italian versions of the SATAQ-4-Revised (SATAQ-4R-Female, SATAQ-4R-Male). Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) indicated that the original seven-factor structure was replicated for women and men. The seven subscales (Internalization: Thin/Low Body Fat; Internalization: Muscular; Internalization: General Attractiveness; Pressures: Family; Pressures: Peers; Pressures: Significant Others; and Pressures: Media) showed good internal consistency and 4-week test-retest reliability. Associations between SATAQ-4R subscales and body dissatisfaction, eating disorder symptomatology, drive for muscularity, self-esteem, family influences, and peer influences, suggested good convergent validity among both women and men. The present study provides evidence for the validity and reliability of the male and female Italian versions of the SATAQ-4R.

Psychosocial correlates of gap time to anabolic-androgenic steroid use.

OBJECTIVE: Theoretically, legal supplement use precedes and increases the risk for illicit appearance and performance enhancing drug (APED) use-also referred to as the gateway hypothesis. Little is known about associations between the speed of progression, or gap time, from legal to illicit APED use, and psychological risk factors, such as sociocultural influence, eating disorders, body image disturbance, and impulsivity. METHOD: The sample taken from two studies included 172 active steroid users (n = 143) and intense-exercising healthy controls (n = 29) between the ages of 18 and 60 (M = 34.16, SD = 10.43), the majority of whom were male (91.9%). Participants, retrospectively, reported APED use and completed measures assessing psychological and behavioral factors, including eating concern, muscle dysmorphia, and impulsivity. Participants had a gap time from initial APED use to anabolic-androgenic steroid (AAS) use that ranged from 0 to 38 years. RESULTS: Continuous survival analysis indicated that interactions between self- versus other sociocultural influence on APED onset and both higher eating concern and impulsivity are associated with a shorter gap time from initial legal to illicit APED use. DISCUSSION: The results indicate the potential value in developing different strategies for individuals with other sociocultural versus self-influence on illicit APED use, and among more impulsive and eating-concerned APED users. Future research is needed to assess different trajectories of APED use, such that eating-concerned and impulsive individuals who perceive less other sociocultural influence may be at greatest risk for a speedier progression to AAS use.

Influencia de pares en preadolescentes y adolescentes: Un predictor de la insatisfacción corporal y las conductas alimentarias anómalas / Peer influence in preadolescents and adolescents: A predictor of body dissatisfaction and disordered eating behaviors

Los pares contribuyen a la presencia de insatisfacción corporal y conductas alimentarias anómalas, mismas que tienen su pico de ocurrencia durante la adolescencia; sin embargo, se ha sugerido que los pares pueden incidir desde edades más tempranas. Por ello, los propósitos de este estudio fueron: evaluar la influencia de pares, la interiorización del ideal corporal, la insatisfacción corporal y las conductas alimentarias anómalas en preadolescentes vs. adolescentes; y analizar la influencia de pares en la predicción de la insatisfacción corporal y las conductas alimentarias anómalas. Participaron 273 preadolescentes y 175 adolescentes, hombres y mujeres, quienes completaron cuatro cuestionarios, además de recabar su peso y estatura. La prueba t de Student solo reveló diferencias entre los grupos en índice de masa corporal, interacción con pares, interiorización del ideal corporal y conductas alimentarias anómalas, siendo los adolescentes quienes obtuvieron mayores puntuaciones en las primeras tres variables. Los análisis de senderos mostraron que en ambos grupos los pares tuvieron efecto directo sobre la insatisfacción corporal, misma que actuó como mediadora del efecto sobre el comportamiento alimentario. Se concluye que la insatisfacción corporal no difiere entre preadolescentes y adolescentes, y que en ambos la influencia de pares mostró ser un importante factor predictor.

Peers contribute to the development of body dissatisfaction and disordered eating behaviors, conditions that show their peak occurrence during the adolescence; however, literature has suggested that peers may influence since earlier ages. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate peer influence, internalization of the body ideal, body dissatisfaction and disordered eating behaviors, in preadolescents vs. adolescents; and to analyze the peer influence in the development of disordered eating behaviors and body dissatisfaction. A total of 273 preadolescents and 175 adolescents' men and women answered four questionnaires, additionally weight and height was measured. The t Student test showed differences between groups only in body mass index, interaction with peers, internalization of body ideal and eating behaviors, being adolescents who obtained higher scores in the first three variables. Path analysis showed that in both groups peers influenced body dissatisfaction, which act as a mediator of disordered eating behavior. It is concluded that body dissatisfaction is not different between preadolescents and adolescents and in both groups peer influence was an important predictive factor.

Validación argentina del Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance Questionnaire-3 / Argentine validation of the Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance Questionnaire-3

En este estudio se presenta la adaptación y validación del Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance Questionnaire-3 (SATAQ-3) en mujeres con y sin trastorno alimentario. La muestra incluyó 58 pacientes mujeres con trastorno alimentario y 237 mujeres estudiantes universitarias de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires (Argentina) de entre 18 y 34 años. En función de la presencia o ausencia de trastorno alimentario se formaron 2 grupos de comparación. Se halló que en ambos grupos la solución de 4 factores propuesta en la versión original de la escala es la más adecuada, excluyendo los ítems 19 y 20. La solución de 4 factores explica el 58% (mujeres con trastorno alimentario) y el 61% (mujeres sin trastorno alimentario) de la varianza total. El α de Cronbach de la escala total fue de 0.91 (mujeres con trastorno alimentario) y de 0.94 (mujeres sin trastorno alimentario). Asimismo, se observaron indicadores de validez concurrente y de constructo. En conclusión, la versión argentina del SATAQ-3 presentó indicadores adecuados de validez y consistencia interna, resultando un instrumento promisorio para la evaluación de diferentes dimensiones de las influencias socioculturales sobre la imagen corporal en mujeres con y sin trastorno alimentario.

In this study is presented the adaptation and validation of the Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance Questionnaire-3 (SATAQ-3) in women with and without eating disorders. The sample included 58 patients with eating disorders and 237 university students from Ciudad de Buenos Aires (Argentina), aged between 18 and 34. Two comparison groups were formed according to the presence or absence of eating disorders. In both groups, the four-factor solution proposed in the original version of the scale is the most appropriate (excluding items 19 and 20). This four-factor solution explained 58% (women with eating disorders) and 61% (women without eating disorders) of the total variance. Cronbach's α for the total scale was .91 (women with eating disorders) and .94 (women without eating disorders). Concurrent and construct validity were also evidenced. This study shows appropriate indicators of validity and internal consistency for the Argentine version of SATAQ-3. Therefore, it is a promising instrument for the assessment of different dimensions of sociocultural influence towards appearance among women with and without eating disorders.

The association of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder with socioeconomic disadvantage: alternative explanations and evidence.

BACKGROUND: Studies throughout Northern Europe, the United States and Australia have found an association between childhood attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and family socioeconomic disadvantage. We report further evidence for the association and review potential causal pathways that might explain the link. METHOD: Secondary analysis of a UK birth cohort (the Millennium Cohort Study, N = 19,519) was used to model the association of ADHD with socioeconomic disadvantage and assess evidence for several potential explanatory pathways. The case definition of ADHD was a parent-report of whether ADHD had been identified by a medical doctor or health professional when children were 7 years old. RESULTS: ADHD was associated with a range of indicators of social and economic disadvantage including poverty, housing tenure, maternal education, income, lone parenthood and younger motherhood. There was no evidence to suggest childhood ADHD was a causal factor of socioeconomic disadvantage: income did not decrease for parents of children with ADHD compared to controls over the 7-year study period. No clinical bias towards labelling ADHD in low SES groups was detected. There was evidence to suggest that parent attachment/family conflict mediated the relationship between ADHD and SES. CONCLUSION: Although genetic and neurological determinants may be the primary predictors of difficulties with activity level and attention, aetiology appears to be influenced by socioeconomic situation.

Propiedades psicométricas del Inventario de Influencia de Pares sobre la Preocupación Alimentaria / Psychometric properties of the Inventory of Peer Influence on Eating Concerns

El propósito del presente estudio fue conocer las propiedades psicométricas del Inventario de Influencia de Pares sobre la Preocupación Alimentaria en mujeres y hombres mexicanos de entre 10 y 19 años de edad. La muestra fue no probabilística de tipo intencional, conformada por 917 participantes (498 mujeres y 419 hombres). Se realizaron tres piloteos, a partir de estos se consideró necesario derivar dos versiones, una para cada sexo. Se obtuvo un alpha de Cronbach de .94 y .92 para la versión femenina y masculina, respectivamente. El análisis factorial exploratorio arrojó tres factores, los cuales son: mensajes, popularidad con el sexo opuesto e interacción con pares del mismo sexo, es preciso señalar que a pesar de ello ambas versiones no son equiparables. Finalmente, se realizó un análisis factorial confirmatorio para cada versión, femenina y masculina, que corroboró el modelo factorial propuesto en el análisis exploratorio. A partir de los resultados obtenidos es posible concluir que ambas versiones del inventario constituyen una herramienta útil para evaluar la influencia de pares sobre la preocupación alimentaria.

The aim of this research was to know the psychometric properties of the Inventory of Peer Influence on Eating Concerns in Mexican female and male population among 10 and 19 years old. The sample was non-probabilistic, composed by 917 participants (females 498 and males 419). After three testing pilots it was necessary to carried out two versions, one for each gender. Cronbach's alpha of .94 was obtained for female and .92 for male version. The exploratory factor analysis yielded three factors, which are: messages, likability with peers of the opposite sex and interaction with peers of the same sex, however it is worthy to note that these two versions are not comparable. Finally, a confirmatory factor analysis was conducted for each version, female and male, which confirmed the factorial model proposed in the exploratory analysis. Based on these results it is possible to conclude that both versions of this inventory are a useful tool to evaluate peer influence on eating concerns.