Fat Kids Can`t Do Maths: Negative Body Weight Stereotyping and Associations with Academic Competence and Participation in School Activities Among Primary School Children

Abstract

Aim: To investigate children's body image, perceptions of the academic abilities of thin and fat children and whether body image influences student's academic confidence and/or participation in school classroom activities. Methods: The Children's Body Image Scale (CBIS) depicting seven figures ranging from thin (A) to fat (G) and individual one-on-one interviews were completed by 15 children aged 8 to 10 years. Results: The thinnest CBIS figures (A, B) were the most nominated 'ideals'. Children with two largest figures, F or G were not nominated as ideal. Thin children were generally ranked as best and perceived as kind; happy; small eaters and socially successful. Fat children were perceived as unintelligent; lazy; greedy; unpopular; bullying and unable or unwilling to play physical games. Thin children were perceived as best at sport; dancing; mathematics and giving speeches. No fat children were perceived as best at any of the academic skills. Conclusion: Body image ideals and fat stereotypes are well entrenched among children although it did not appear to adversely affect their academic confidence and participation in school activities at this age. Teachers and health educators could promote children's participation in academic activities and encourage well being by implementing programs that increase acceptance of a wide range of healthy, and active body shapes. behavior and job competence. The results of this study showed that the girls considered themselves to be less intelligent and academically competent than their lower weight peers, based purely on their body weight perceptions. These findings suggest that adolescent's poor self image is reflected in their poor body image and their desire to seek the perfect body, which is characterized by slimness in females and slim/muscularity in males. These perfect body ideals are largely unattainable by most individuals and the pursuit of them often translates into repeated failure, further weight gain and lower self worth. The current study seeks to investigate these phenomena in younger children to examine if body image issues affect primary school children's academic self concept as well as self image related to children's participation in classroom and physical education activities. The major research question in the current study was How do primary school children perceive their own bodies and those of others and do children's body image perceptions relate to their perceptions of and confidence in academic activities, sporting ability and other school activities?