Correlates of body satisfaction and self-concept in third- and sixth-graders

The purpose of this correlational study was to examine the relationship bet ween body satisfaction and self-concept in elementary school children. Part icipants were twenty-three boys and twenty-eight girls from the third and s ixth grades of a rural public school. Demographic information, body satisfa ction scores, self-concept scores, and measures of parental attitudes were obtained from the participants through a questionnaire. It was hypothesized that body satisfaction and self-concept would be related in elementary sch ool children. It was expected that this relationship would be impacted by g rade, sex, and parental attitudes. A significant relationship existed betwe en body satisfaction and self-concept in girls, but not boys. No grade diff erences were detected in the relationship. Body satisfaction was significan tly correlated with body criticism from peers among sixth graders. A parent 's body satisfaction appeared to be a significant predictor of the body sat isfaction of his/her opposite sex child for both third- and sixth-graders.