Girls’ Self‑Esteem and its Association with Self‑Stigma toward Obesity

Mohammed Baqer Abbas Al‑Jubouri, Hassan A. Athbi, Wuod A. Hassan, Hanan H. Owed, Nabaa S. Malik, Hadeel B. Jasim, Maha M. Sabar, Fatimah A. Almusaedi, Namaa D. Salman

Abstract


Background: Obesity among girls can lead to physical, psychological, or social problems. Enhancing self‑esteem and reducing self‑stigma toward obesity can play a crucial role in girls’ health. This study aims to assess girls’ self‑esteem and its association with self‑stigma toward obesity.

Materials and Methods: A descriptive cross‑sectional design was used to meet the study’s objective. A convenience sampling method was used to gather the sample from 24 middle and high schools in five cities across Iraq from (January 2023 to March 2023). A total of 1326 girls participated in the study. Weight Self‑Stigma Questionnaire and Rosenberg Self‑Esteem Scale were used to assess self‑stigma and self‑esteem regarding obesity. Pearson’s rho (r) and one‑way ANOVA were used to analyze the data by SPSS version 26.

Results: In total, 1200 girls scored on weight self‑stigma and self‑esteem, and the means (SD) were 29.28 (±7.06) and 30.47 (4.43), respectively. The results revealed that there was a significant negative correlation between weight self‑stigma and self‑esteem (r = ‑.404, p < 0.001). Conclusions: Iraqi girls with higher obesity‑related stigma have lower self‑esteem. Hence, as obesity can affect girls’ body image, increasing girls’ self‑esteem can reduce their weight self‑stigma.


Keywords


Obesity, self‑concept, social stigma, women

Full Text:

PDF

References


World Health Organization. Regional Office for Europe. WHO European Regional Obesity Report 2022. World Health Organization. Regional Office for Europe; 2022. Available from: https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/353747.

KavehFarsani Z, Kelishadi R, Beshlideh K. Study of the effect of family communication and function, and satisfaction with body image, on psychological well‑being of obese girls: the mediating role of self‑esteem and depression. Child Adolescent Psychiatry Ment Health 2020;14:39.

Bhadouria S, Bhadoria D. A study of adolescent girls’ self‑esteem in relationship with obesity. Int J Home Sci 2017;3:106‑10.

Pengpid S, Peltzer K. Overweight and obesity among adults in Iraq: Prevalence and Correlates from a National Survey in 2015. Int J Environ Res Public Health 2012;18:4198.

Jach L, Kryston S. Self‑reported body weight and weight‑related stigmatization experiences among young adult women—two contexts, but similar attitudes related to body image, mental self‑schemas, self‑esteem, and stereotypes of people with obesity. Peer J 2021;9:e12047.

Alenazy R, Aljebreen A. The effect of obesity stigma on obese people, Saudi Arabia, 2020. World Fam Med 2021;19:65‑74.

Mohammed AE, Ibrahim MH, Hagag SA, Mohamed HM. Obesity and self‑esteem among school adolescent students, Alexandria City, Egypt. Egypt J Community Med 2019;37:16‑24.

BinDhim NF, Althumiri NA, Basyouni MH, Sims OT, Alhusseini N, Alqahtani SA. Arabic translation of the weight self‑stigma questionnaire: Instrument validation study of factor structure and reliability. JMIR Form Res 2020;4:e24169.

Jaacks LM, Slining MM, Popkin BM. Recent trends in the prevalence of under-and overweight among adolescent girls in low-and middle-income countries. Pediatr Obes 2015;10:428‑35.

Hales CM, Carroll MD, Fryar CD, Ogden CL. Prevalence of obesity among adults and youth: United States, 2015–2016. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; 2017. Available from: https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/49223.

Lillis J, Luoma JB, Levin ME, Hayes SC. Measuring weight self-stigma: The weight self-stigma questionnaire. Obesity 2010;18:971‑6.

Rosenberg M. Rosenberg self‑esteem scale [RSE]. Acceptance and commitment therapy. Measures Package 1965;61:18.

Zaidi U, Awad SS, Mortada EM, Qasem HD, Kayal GF. Psychometric evaluation of Arabic version of self‑esteem, psychological well‑being and impact of weight on quality of life questionnaire [IWQOL‑Lite] in female student sample of PNU. Eur Med Health Pharm J 2015;8:29-33. doi:

12955/emhpj. v8i2.703. 14. Saffari M, Chen JS, Wu HC, Fung XC, Chang CC, Chang YL, et al. Effects of weight‑related self‑stigma and smartphone addiction on female university students’ physical activity levels. Int J Environ Res Public Health 2022;19:2631.

Farhangi MA, Emam‑Alizadeh M, Hamedi F, Jahangiry L. Weight self‑stigma and its association with quality of life and psychological distress among overweight and obese women. EatWeight Disord 2017;22:451‑6.

Khodari BH, Shami MO, Shajry RM, Shami JA, Alamer AA, Moafa AM, et al. The relationship between weight self‑stigma and quality of life among youth in the Jazan region, Saudi Arabia. Cureus 2021;13:e18158.

Aldhahi MI, Al Khalil WK, Almutiri RB, Alyousefi MM, Alharkan BS, AnNasban H. Effect of weight self‑stigma and self‑esteem on aerobic exercise capacity in adult women with different body compositions. Int J Environ Res Public Health 2022;19:873.

Ahadzadeh AS, Rafik‑Galea S, Alavi M, Amini M. Relationship between body mass index, body image, and fear of negative evaluation: Moderating role of self‑esteem. Health Psychol Open 2018;5.

Nelis S, Bukowski WM. Daily affect and self‑esteem in early adolescence: Correlates of mean levels and within‑person variability. Psychol Belg 2019;59:96‑115.

Puhl RM, Himmelstein MS, Pearl RL. Weight stigma as a psychosocial contributor to obesity. Am Psychol 2020;75:274‑89.


Refbacks

  • There are currently no refbacks.