Body shape preference and body satisfaction in Taiwanese college students

This study examined differences in measures of perception of body shape and body satisfaction among 25 male and 165 female undergraduates. The students completed a body image questionnaire, comprised of four parts: (1) anthropometric data; (2) figure rating scale; (3) cognitive attitude toward body size; and (4) satisfaction with body characteristics. This study found that male ratings of the Ideal figure, the figure of how they currently thought they looked, and the figure of how they felt most of time were almost identical, as were the figure of what they thought most attractive to women and the figure of how they thought others saw them. On the contrary, female ratings of the Ideal figure were significantly thinner than their perception of their current figure, the figure as others saw them, and the figure they felt most of time. Furthermore, the female figure that women rated as most attractive to males was thinner than the figure that males actually preferred. On the other hand, male judgments of the male figure most attractive to females were heavier than female ratings of the same. Both males and females erred in estimating what the opposite sex would find attractive. Males overestimated and females underestimated the body size attractive to the other sex. Although over half of the male and female subjects reported their body size as 'In-between', more males wanted to gain weight and more females wanted to lose weight to present their Ideal body shape. Furthermore, males were biased toward being satisfied with their body and females were biased toward being dissatisfied with their body. Additionally, the number of females satisfied with hands and dissatisfied with upper thighs and buttocks was higher than that of males.