12 Month Longitudinal Relationships Between Peer Victimization, Positive Parenting and Appearance Dissatisfaction in Early Adolescents

This is the authors' abstract. We don't add key points for this paper.

Peer victimization is associated with higher appearance dissatisfaction in adolescence. However, there is limited longitudinal research in this field and there has been little consideration of factors (such as positive family relationships) that may protect victimized adolescents against developing appearance dissatisfaction. This study aimed to examine the cross-sectional and longitudinal relationships between peer victimization and appearance dissatisfaction among early adolescents, as well as investigate the potential moderating role of positive parenting in these associations. This study used data from two consecutive waves of the UK Longitudinal Household Study (UKLHS). Participants were early adolescents (aged 10 years) and their parents (n = 309 dyads). Adolescents self-reported on appearance dissatisfaction (age 10 and age 11) and peer victimization (age 10), and parents provided self-report parenting practices. Peer victimization at 10 years old was positively correlated with concurrent appearance dissatisfaction. However, it did not predict changes in appearance dissatisfaction from age 10 to 11 years. No significant moderating effect of positive parenting was found. In general, adolescents with a history of peer victimization are more likely to experience higher levels of concurrent appearance dissatisfaction, but not increases in appearance dissatisfaction over time. Furthermore, among victimized adolescents, having a warm, caring, and responsive parent may not protect against negative body image. This study highlights the need for school-based interventions in tackling appearance dissatisfaction.