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Global Body and Muscle Satisfaction Among College Men in the United States and Hong Kong-China

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Abstract

Body dissatisfaction was studied in college men from a central university in Hong Kong (n = 109) and a mid-Atlantic university in the U.S. (n = 114). Hong Kong men had lower global body satisfaction than U.S. men, but had greater satisfaction with muscularity, lower drive for muscularity, and associated fewer positive attributes with muscularity. A large majority of both Hong Kong and U.S. men were dissatisfied with their level of muscularity. Results for global body dissatisfaction were consistent with reports from studies indicating that East Asian women have lower body satisfaction than U.S. women. Results from the measures of muscularity were consistent with Louie’s (2002) description of the Chinese masculinity. Implications for sociocultural and feminist theory were discussed.

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Acknowledgement

This project was partially supported by Faculty Summer Research Awards from the Women’s Studies program at University of Delaware.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Fashion and Apparel Studies, University of Delaware, 304 Alison Hall West, Newark, DE, 19716, USA

    Jaehee Jung

  2. Millikin University, Decatur, IL, USA

    Gordon B. Forbes

  3. The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong

    Priscilla Chan

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  1. Jaehee Jung
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  2. Gordon B. Forbes
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Correspondence to Jaehee Jung.

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Jung, J., Forbes, G.B. & Chan, P. Global Body and Muscle Satisfaction Among College Men in the United States and Hong Kong-China. Sex Roles 63, 104–117 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-010-9760-z

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