Objective: The etiology of body dissatisfaction and its correlates (eg, disordered eating) among ethnic minorities is generally unknown. The purpose of this study was to replicate the tripartite model of influence in an Asian American college female sample in order to examine this relationship.
Participants: Participants were 80 undergraduate Asian American females between the ages of 18 and 25.
Methods: Participants completed a survey that included the Tripartite Influence Scale, Body Parts Satisfaction Scale, and Sociocultural Attitudes towards Appearance Questionnaire-3.
Results: Mediation analyses indicated that thin-ideal internalization fully mediated the relationship between media influence and body dissatisfaction and partially mediated the relationship between peer influence and body dissatisfaction. Family influence did not significantly predict body dissatisfaction.
Conclusions: Asian American college females experience body dissatisfaction through mechanisms that have not been examined in detail. These factors must be considered when creating targeted health promotion strategies and developing best practices for eating disorder assessment and treatment protocols at university health centers.
Keywords: Asian American; body dissatisfaction; thin-ideal internalization; tripartite influence.