Assessing and understanding body image and body satisfaction in gay and bisexual men through objectification theory

Abstract

Body dissatisfaction and the prevalence of Objectification Theory are researched and often discussed in terms of cisgender women. Research that mentions body image in the gay and bisexual community concludes that there is either a small percentage of gay and bisexual men that experience body dissatisfaction or that gay and bisexual men have higher rates of body satisfaction than cisgender women. This study, firstly, aims to assess body image and satisfaction in the understudied gay community. Then, it aims to develop an understanding of gay men’s narratives of body image and body dissatisfaction. Using a unique survey composed of the Multidimensional Body-Self Relations Questionnaire-Appearance Scale (MBSRQ-AS) and the Objectified Body Consciousness Scale (OBCS), a total of 387 surveys, including 158 cisgender women and 179 gay and bisexual men, were collected. Upon initial observation, gay and bisexual men have greater body satisfaction than cisgender women. However, when grouped by age, gay and bisexual men aged 16-25 have a higher body dissatisfaction than cisgender women and have higher body dissatisfaction than the other age groups of gay and bisexual men. These results start the conversations that experiences that are considered traditionally feminine can affect masculine individuals.

LAY SUMMARY

This study examines body image and satisfaction in the gay community, finding that gay and bisexual men generally have higher body satisfaction than cisgender women. However, younger gay and bisexual men aged 16-25 have higher body dissatisfaction than cisgender women and other age groups of gay and bisexual men. These findings suggest that traditionally feminine experiences can impact masculine individuals.

Keywords:

• Body image
• objectification theory
• gay and bisexual men
• mbsrq-as
• oBCS

Acknowledgement

Thank you, Dr. Kelly Kent, for guiding, inspiring, and nurturing this novice research to unearth concepts and data that will help people feel less shame about their experiences. Thank you, Dr. Allen Lipscomb, without you, this piece of literature would not have the opportunity to help shed light on the male experience.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s). The author declares that no funds, grants, or other support were received for conducting this study and no funding was received to assist with the preparation of this manuscript. The author has no relevant financial or non-financial interest to disclose. Material preparation, data collection and analysis were performed by Brandon Simpson. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Brandon Simpson and has approved the final manuscript.

Data availability statement

The authors confirm that the data supporting the findings of this study are available within the article The author was the sole contributor to the study concept and design.