Factorial Model of Obese Adolescents: The Role of Body Image Concerns and Selective Depersonalization—A Pilot Study

Marco La Marra, Antonietta Messina, Ciro Rosario Ilardi (), Maria Staiano, Girolamo Di Maio, Giovanni Messina, Rita Polito, Anna Valenzano, Giuseppe Cibelli, Vincenzo Monda, Sergio Chieffi, Alessandro Iavarone and Ines Villano
Additional contact information
Marco La Marra: Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, 80138 Naples, Italy
Antonietta Messina: Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, 80138 Naples, Italy
Ciro Rosario Ilardi: Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, 80138 Naples, Italy
Maria Staiano: Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, 80138 Naples, Italy
Girolamo Di Maio: Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, 80138 Naples, Italy
Giovanni Messina: Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Foggia, 71100 Foggia, Italy
Rita Polito: Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Foggia, 71100 Foggia, Italy
Anna Valenzano: Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Foggia, 71100 Foggia, Italy
Giuseppe Cibelli: Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Foggia, 71100 Foggia, Italy
Vincenzo Monda: Department of Movement Sciences and Wellbeing, University of Naples “Parthenope”, 80133 Naples, Italy
Sergio Chieffi: Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, 80138 Naples, Italy
Alessandro Iavarone: Neurological Unit, CTO Hospital, AORN “Ospedali dei Colli”, 80131 Naples, Italy
Ines Villano: Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, 80138 Naples, Italy

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 18, 1-17

Abstract: Background: The relationship binding body weight to psychological well-being is unclear. The present study aims at identifying the contribution, and specificity, of some dimensions (i.e., eating-related symptoms, body image disorders, eating habits, personality traits, and emotional difficulties) characterizing the psychological profile of obese adolescents (749 participants, 325 females; 58.3% normal-weight, 29.9% overweight, and 11.7% obese; mean age = 16.05, SD = 0.82). Methods: By introducing the scores obtained by standardized self-report tools into a generalized linear model, a factorial reduction design was used to detect the best fitting discriminant functions and the principal components explaining the higher proportion of the variance. Results: We found two discriminant functions correctly classifying 87.1% of normal-weight, 57.2% of overweight, and 68.2% of obese adolescents. Furthermore, two independent factors, explaining 69.68% of the total variance, emerged. Conclusions: The first factor, “Body Image Concerns”, included the drive for thinness, body dissatisfaction, and interpersonal distrust. The second factor, “Selective Depersonalization”, included a trend toward depersonalization and dissatisfaction with the torso. The neurophysiological implications of our findings will be discussed.

Keywords: adolescent obesity; body image; body schema; depersonalization; discriminant analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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