Gender, Gender Role, and Body Image.

This study examined the importance of gender and gender role in understanding self-perceptions of body image. Male and female college students (N=166) who differed in gender role as measured by the Bem Sex Role Inventory completed the Body-Self Relations Questionnaire, a new measure of body image containing 140 items which fit a 3 x 3 matrix that fully crosses three somatic domains (physical appearance, physical fitness, and physical health) with three psychological dimensions (evaluation, importance, and behaviors). The results revealed that females placed more emphasis on physical appearance than did males, while the reverse was true for physical fitness. The importance of physical appearance to feminine females and the unimportance of physical fitness to feminine males were also evident from the results. Future research might examine actual physical and behavioral differences among the gender role groups and compare them to differences in self-perceptions. (Author/NB)