Gender-role orientation and body image in women and men: The moderating influence of neuroticism

Abstract

This study examined the effects of gender-role orientation on aspects of body image satisfaction in a group of primarily Caucasian young women and men. It also examined whether neuroticism—a broad, higher-order dimension of personality—functioned additively or interactively with gender-role orientation in the prediction of body image. Similar to previous research, masculinity was related to positive body image in women. For men, results were in the opposite direction. Femininity, and not masculinity, was related to body satisfaction. Of particular interest were the findings that neuroticism interacted both with masculinity in women and femininity in men in predicting positive ratings of attractiveness. In both cases, the positive relationship between gender-role orientation and attractiveness only existed at low levels of neuroticism. As neuroticism increased, the relationship diminished; there was no relationship at all at high levels of neuroticism. Results are discussed in terms of the differential significance of gender-role orientation for body esteem in women and men, and with respect to the moderating influence of personality factors.