Abstract
Teasing and pressure from family members influences the development of body dissatisfaction. Body dissatisfaction is a common experience for girls and can lead to eating disorders. However, most body image disturbance research to date neglects the possible influence of siblings. In light of this, the present study investigated the associations between sibling negative appearance-based talk, intimacy, and body dissatisfaction. The sample consisted of 113 mostly White, female adolescents, whose ages ranged from 12 to 19 years with a mean age of 14.85 (SD = 1.62). This study first examined direct associations between negative body talk, including appearance related teasing and pressure from siblings, and girls’ body dissatisfaction. Second, indirect effects models with intimacy included were examined. There were significant direct links between appearance related pressure from siblings and body dissatisfaction, and significant indirect effects such that sibling teasing and pressure were associated with sibling intimacy, which was associated with body dissatisfaction. These results indicate that siblings play an important role in the development of girls’ body dissatisfaction.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Ata, R. N., Ludden, A. B., & Lally, M. M. (2007). The effects of gender and family, friend, and media influences on eating behaviors and body image during adolescence. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 36(8), 1024–1037. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-006-9159-x.
Baron, R. M., & Kenny, D. A. (1986). The moderator–mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51(6), 1173 https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.51.6.1173.
Bliss, N. D. (2000). The body image of closest-in-age adolescent sisters: the relative contribution of four theoretical explanations of body image disturbance. Unpublished honors thesis, Deakin University, Geelong, Victoria.
Blodgett Salafia, E. H., Gondoli, D. M., & Grundy, A. M. (2008). Marital conflict as a mediator of the longitudinal connections between maternal emotional distress and early adolescent maladjustment. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 17(6), 928–950. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-008-9199-9.
Blodgett Salafia, E. H., & Jones, M. E. (2018). Eating disorders. In M. H. Bornstein (Ed.), Sage encyclopedia of lifespan human development (pp. 697–699). Los Angeles, CA: Sage. https://doi.org/10.4135/9781506307633.n261
Bucchianeri, M. M., Arikian, A. J., Hannan, P. J., Eisenberg, M. E., & Neumark-Sztainer, D. (2013). Body dissatisfaction from adolescence to young adulthood: findings from a 10-year longitudinal study. Body Image, 10(1), 1–7. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2012.09.001.
Buhrmester, D., & Furman, W. (1987). The development of companionship and intimacy. Child Development, 58, 1101–1113. https://doi.org/10.2307/1130550.
Buhrmester, D., & Furman, W. (1990). Perceptions of sibling relationships during middle childhood and adolescence. Child Development, 61(5), 1387–1398. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.1990.tb02869.x.
Buist, K. L., Deković, M., & Prinzie, P. (2013). Sibling relationship quality and psychopathology of children and adolescents: a meta-analysis. Clinical Psychology Review, 33, 97–106. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2012.10.007.
Branje, S. J., Van Lieshout, C. F., Van Aken, M. A., & Haselager, G. J. (2004). Perceived support in sibling relationships and adolescent adjustment. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 45(8), 1385–1396. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1469-7610.2004.00332.x.
Berge, J. M., Trofholz, A., Fong, S., Blue, L., & Neumark-Sztainer, D. (2015). A qualitative analysis of parents’ perceptions of weight talk and weight teasing in the home environments of diverse low-income children. Body Image, 15, 8–15. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2015.04.006.
Calzo, J. P., Sonneville, K. R., Haines, J., Blood, E. A., Field, A. E., & Austin, S. B. (2012). The development of associations among body mass index, body dissatisfaction, and weight and shape concern in adolescent boys and girls. Journal of Adolescent Health, 51(5), 517–523. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2012.02.021.
Cash, T. F. (1995). Developmental teasing about physical appearance: retrospective descriptions and relationships with body image. Social Behavior and Personality: An International Journal, 23(2), 123–130. https://doi.org/10.2224/sbp.1995.23.2.123.
Campione‐Barr, N., & Smetana, J. G. (2010). “Who said you could wear my sweater?” Adolescent siblings’ conflicts and associations with relationship quality. Child Development, 81(2), 464–471. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2009.01407.x.
Cicrelli, V. G. (1995). Strengthening sibling relationships in the later years. In Smith, G. C., Tobin, S. S., Roberston-Tchabo, E. A. and Power, P. W. (eds), Strengthening aging families: diversity in practice and policy. Sage, Thousand Oaks, California, 45–60.
Cole, A., & Kerns, K. A. (2001). Perceptions of sibling qualities and activities of early adolescents. The Journal of Early Adolescence, 21(2), 204–227. https://doi.org/10.1177/0272431601021002004.
Criss, M. M., & Shaw, D. S. (2005). Sibling relationships as contexts for delinquency training in low-income families. Journal of Family Psychology, 19(4), 592 https://doi.org/10.1037/0893-3200.19.4.592.
Davies, P. T., Parry, L. Q., Bascoe, S. M., Martin, M. J., & Cummings, E. M. (2019). Children’s vulnerability to interparental conflict: the protective role of sibling relationship quality. Child Development, 90(6), 2118–2134.
Dunstan, C. J., Paxton, S. J., & McLean, S. A. (2017). An evaluation of a body image intervention in adolescent girls delivered in single-sex versus co-educational classroom settings. Eating Behaviors, 25, 23–31. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eatbeh.2016.03.016.
Eisenberg, A. R. (1986). Teasing: verbal play in two Mexicano homes. In B. B. Schieffelin & E. Ochs (Eds.), Studies in the social and cultural foundations of language, No. 3. Language socialization across cultures (p. 182–198). Cambridge University Press.
Eisenberg, M., Neumark-Sztainer, D., & Story, M. (2003). Associations of weight based teasing and emotional well-being among adolescents. Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, 157, 733–738. https://doi.org/10.1001/archpedi.157.8.733.
Feinberg, M. E., Solmeyer, A. R., & McHale, S. M. (2012). The third rail of family systems: sibling relationships, mental and behavioral health, and preventive intervention in childhood and adolescence. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 15, 43–57. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10567-011-0104-5.
Festinger, L. (1954). A theory of social comparison processes. Human Relations, 7, 117–140. https://doi.org/10.1177/001872675400700202.
Furman, W. & Buhrmester, D. (1985). Children’s perceptions of the qualities of sibling relationships. Child Development, 56, 448–461.
Galmiche, M., Déchelotte, P., Lambert, G., & Tavolacci, M. P. (2019). Prevalence of eating disorders over the 2000–2018 period: a systematic literature review. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 109, 1402–1413. https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/nqy342.
Garner, D. M., Olmstead, M. P., & Polivy, J. (1983). Development and validation of a multidimensional eating disorder inventory for anorexia nervosa and bulimia. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 2, 15–34. 10.1002/1098-108X(198321)2:2<15::AID-EAT2260020203>3.0.CO;2-6.
Greer, K. B., Campione-Barr, N., & Lindell, A. K. (2015). Body talk: siblings’ use of positive and negative body self-disclosure and associations with sibling relationship quality and body-esteem. Journal of Youth Adolescence, 44, 1567–1579. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-014-0180-1.
Haugen, E. (2012) Adolescent sibling relationships and disordered eating. (Master’s thesis). https://hdl.handle.net/10365/26693
Harwood, D. S. (2007). Exploring the phenomenon of teasing: a collective case study of three sibling dyads (Doctoral dissertation). University of Victoria.
Hayes, A. F. (2018). Introduction to mediation, moderation, and conditional process analysis: a regression-based approach (Second edition). New York: Guilford Press.
Howe, N., Aquan-Assee, J., Bukowski, W. M., Lehoux, P. M., & Rinaldi, C. M. (2001). Siblings as confidants: emotional, understanding, relationship warmth, and sibling self-disclosure. Social Development, 10, 439–454. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9507.00174.
Keery, H., Boutelle, K., Van Den Berg, P., & Thompson, J. K. (2005). The impact of appearance-related teasing by family members. Journal of Adolescent Health, 37(2), 120–127. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jadohealth.2004.08.015.
Kerbs, A. F., & El-Alayli, A. (2016). Parenting dynamics in childhood as they relate to body dissatisfaction in adult women: an exploration of parental attachment, acceptance, teasing, and body-related comments. Journal of Integrated Social Sciences, 6(1), 75–103. https://rb.gy/9ktf0i.
Killoren, S. E., Wheeler, L. A., Updegraff, K. A., Rodríguez de Jésus, S. A., & McHale, S. M. (2015). Longitudinal associations among parental acceptance, familism values, and sibling intimacy in Mexican‐origin families. Family Process, 54(2), 217–231. https://doi.org/10.1111/famp.12126.
Kim, J. Y., McHale, S. M., Crouter, A. C., & Osgood, D. W. (2007). Longitudinal linkages between sibling relationships and adjustment from middle childhood through adolescence. Developmental Psychology, 43(4), 960 https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.43.4.960.
Kluck, A. S. (2010). Family influence on disordered eating: The role of body image dissatisfaction. Body Image, 7(1), 8–14. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2009.09.009.
Lamb, M. E., Sutton-Smith, B., Sutton-Smith, B., & Lamb, M. E. (Eds.). (2014). Sibling relationships: their nature and significance across the lifespan. Psychology Press.
Lawler, M., & Nixon, E. (2011). Body dissatisfaction among adolescent boys and girls: the effects of body mass, peer appearance culture and internalization of appearance ideals. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 40(1), 59–71. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-009-9500-2.
McCabe, M. P., Ricciardelli, L. A., & Ridge, D. (2006). “Who thinks I need a perfect body?” Perceptions and internal dialogue among adolescents about their bodies. Sex Roles, 55(5–6), 409–419. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-006-9093-0.
Mellor, D., McCabe, M., Ricciardelli, L., & Merino, M. E. (2008). Body dissatisfaction and body change behaviors in Chile: the role of sociocultural factors. Body Image, 5(2), 205–215. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2008.01.004.
Minuchin, S. (1974). Families and family therapy. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Minuchin, P. (2002). Looking toward the horizon: present and future in the study of family systems. In J. P. McHale & W. S. Grolnick (Eds.), Retrospect and prospect in the psychological study of families (pp. 259–278). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
Neumark-Sztainer, D. D., Falkner, N. N., Story, M. M., Perry, C. C., & Hannan, P. J. (2002). Weight-teasing among adolescents: correlations with weight status and disordered eating behaviors. International Journal of Obesity & Related Metabolic Disorders, 26(1), 123 https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.ijo.0801853.
Nerini, A., Matera, C., & Stefanile, C. (2016). Siblings’ appearance-related commentary, body dissatisfaction, and risky eating behaviors in young women. European Review of Applied Psychology, 66(6), 269–276. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.erap.2016.06.005.
Pearlman, A. T., Schvey, N. A., Higgins Neyland, M. K., Solomon, S., Hennigan, K., Schindler, R., & Tanofsky-Kraff, M. (2020). Associations between family weight-based teasing, eating pathology, and psychosocial functioning among adolescent military dependents. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(1), 24.
Reis, H. T., & Shaver, P. (1988). Intimacy as an interpersonal process. In Duck, S., Hay, D. F., Hobfoll, S. E., Ickes,W. & Montgomery, B. M. (Eds.), Handbook of personal relationships: theory,research and interventions (p. 367–389). John Wiley & Sons.
Rodgers, R. F., Paxton, S. J., & McLean, S. A. (2014). A biopsychosocial model of body image concerns and disordered eating in early adolescent girls. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 43(5), 814–823. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-013-0013-7.
Rohde, P., Stice, E., & Marti, C. N. (2015). Development and predictive effects of eating disorder risk factors during adolescence: implications for prevention efforts. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 48(2), 187–198. https://doi.org/10.1002/eat.22270.
Schaefer, M. K., & Blodgett Salafia, E. H. (2014). The connection of teasing by parents, siblings, and peers with girls’ body dissatisfaction and boys’ drive for muscularity: the role of social comparison as a mediator. Eating Behaviors, 15(4), 599–608. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eatbeh.2014.08.018.
Senguttuvan, U., Whiteman, S. D., & Jensen, A. C. (2014). Family relationships and adolescents’ health attitudes and weight: the understudied role of sibling relationships. Family Relations, 63(3), 384–396. https://doi.org/10.1111/fare.12073.
Shroff, H. & Thompson, J. K. (2006). The tripartite influence model of body image and eating disturbance: A replication with adolescent girls. Body Image, 3(1), 17–23. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2005.10.004.
Shulman, S., Laursen, B., Kalman, Z., & Karpovsky, S. (1997). Adolescent intimacy revisited. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 26(5), 597–617. 0047-239!/97/IOOaOS97SI2^QO.
Sullivan, H. S. (1953). The interpersonal theory of psychiatry. New York: Norton.
Stice, E. (2001). A prospective test of the dual-pathway model of bulimic pathology: mediating effects of dieting and negative affect. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 110(1), 124 https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-843X.110.1.124.
Stice, E. (2002). Risk and maintenance factors for eating pathology: a meta-analytic review. Psychological Bulletin, 128(5), 825–848. https://doi.org/10.1037//0033-2909.128.5.825.
Stice, E., & Bearman, S. K. (2001). Body-image and eating disturbances prospectively predict increases in depressive symptoms in adolescent girls: a growth curve analysis. Developmental Psychology, 37, 597–607. https://doi.org/10.1037//0012-1649.37.5.597.
Stice, E., & Shaw, H. E. (2002). Role of body dissatisfaction in the onset and maintenance of eating pathology: a synthesis of research findings. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 53(5), 985–993. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-3999(02)00488-9.
Stice, E., & Whitenton, K. (2002). Risk factors for body dissatisfaction in adolescent girls: a longitudinal investigation. Developmental Psychology, 38(5), 669–678. https://doi.org/10.1037//0012-1649.38.5.669.
Stice, E., Ziemba, C., Margolis, J., & Flick, P. (1996). The dual pathway model differentiates bulimics, subclinical bulimics, and controls: testing the continuity hypothesis. Behavior Therapy, 27, 531–549. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0005-7894(96)80042-6.
Tantleff-Dunn, S., Barnes, R. D., & Larose, J. G. (2011). It’s not just a “woman thing:” the current state of normative discontent. Eating Disorders, 19(5), 392–402. https://doi.org/10.1080/10640266.2011.609088.
Taylor, N. L. (2011). “Guys, She’s Humongous!”: gender and weight-based teasing in adolescence. Journal of Adolescent Research, 26(2), 178–199.
Thompson, J. K., Heinberg, L. J., Altabe, M., & Tantleff-Dunn, S. (1999). Exacting beauty: theory, assessment, and treatment of body image disturbance. American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/10312-000.
Updegraff, K. A., Thayer, S. M., Whiteman, S. D., Denning, D. J., & McHale, S. M. (2005). Relational aggression in adolescents’ sibling relationships: links to sibling and parent‐adolescent relationship quality. Family Relations, 54(3), 373–385. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3729.2005.00324.x.
Van den Berg, P., Paxton, S. J., Keery, H., Wall, M., Guo, J., & Neumark-Sztainer, D. (2007). Body dissatisfaction and body comparison with media images in males and females. Body Image, 4(3), 257–268. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bodyim.2007.04.003.
Van Der Vorst, H., Engels, R. C., Meeus, W., Deković, M., & Van Leeuwe, J. (2007). Similarities and bi-directional influences regarding alcohol consumption in adolescent sibling pairs. Addictive Behaviors, 32(9), 1814–1825. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2006.12.011.
Webb, H. J., & Zimmer‐Gembeck, M. J. (2014). The role of friends and peers in adolescent body dissatisfaction: a review and critique of 15 years of research. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 24(4), 564–590. https://doi.org/10.1111/jora.12084.
Wertheim, E. H., Mee, V., & Paxton, S. J. (1999). Relationship s among adolescent girls’ eating behaviours and their parents’ weight-related attitudes and behaviours. Sex Roles, 41(314), 169–187. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1018850111450.
Whiteman, S. D., Solmeyer, A. R., & McHale, S. M. (2015). Sibling relationships and adolescent adjustment: longitudinal associations in two-parent African American families. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 44(11), 2042–2053.
Williams, S. T., Conger, K. J., & Blozis, S. A. (2007). The development of interpersonal aggression during adolescence: the importance of parents, siblings, and family economics. Child Development, 78(5), 1526–1542. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2007.01081.x.
Yeh, H. C., & Lempers, J. D. (2004). Perceived sibling relationships and adolescent development. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 33(2), 133–147.
Funding
No funds, grants, or other support was received.
Data Sharing DeclarationThis manuscript’s data will not be deposited.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
E.J. conceived the research questions, performed the statistical analysis, and participated in drafting the manuscript; E.B.S. designed the overall study, collected the original data, interpreted the data, and participated in drafting the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript
Corresponding authors
Ethics declarations
Conflict of Interest
The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Ethical Approval
Approval was obtained from the ethics committee of North Dakota State University. The procedures used in this study adhere to the tenets of the Declaration of Helsinki.
Informed Consent
Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.
Additional information
Publisher’s note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Johnson, E.L., Salafia, E.H.B. Mediating Effects of Intimacy Between Body Talk and Girls’ Body Dissatisfaction: The Forgotten Sibling Relationship. J Youth Adolescence 51, 1230–1240 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-022-01590-9
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-022-01590-9