Self-perception of body image among Saudi females at Princess Nourah University Riyadh Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Alnefaie Hessa Faleh, . and Alsuwedan Hessah Ibrahim, . and Aldaweesh Shima Abdulaziz, . and Anitha Layam, . and Alhussaini Asma Abdulaziz, . and Qassem Hind, . and Almubrek Rehab Abduallah, . Self-perception of body image among Saudi females at Princess Nourah University Riyadh Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. pp. 117-123. ISSN 1394-035X

Women are influenced by many socio-cultural factors on how they perceive their body image. Methodology: This cross-sectional study assessed self-perception of body image body mass index (BMI) and compared the agreement between actual and perceived BMI among Saudi female adults at Princess Nourah University (PNU) in Riyadh. A total of 336 participants aged 18-50 years were recruited by randomly selecting one of the three colleges in PNU and from among the workers in the selected college. A structured self-administered questionnaire was used to obtain socio-demographic information weight perceptions body satisfaction and media influence on body image. Participants had to give best description of your perceived weight and height�. Results: Majority of the participants were aged 18-29 years and unmarried. Mean BMI was 26.19.41 kg/m2 and more than half of the participants (55.7) belonging to 55-80 kg weight range were overweight. Their mean BMI by actual measurement was 24.28.26 kg/m2 while their self-estimated BMI also fell in the normal BMI category. Cohens Kappa K value of 0.635 indicated a good agreement between the actual and perceived BMI categories. Positive body image perception was given by 68.6 of the participants; 83.9 felt appearance was very important in the context of body image perception; 47.1 agreed that changing their abdominal part was what they wanted to change most while 52.8 opted to lose weight in improving their appearance. Conclusion: Overall an underestimation of body weight in terms of BMI was found among the participants. Such misconceptions should be addressed in view of the high obesity prevalence in Saudi Arabia.

Full text available from: Official URL: http://www.nutriweb.org.my/mjn/2018.php

Abstract

Women are influenced by many socio-cultural factors on how they perceive their body image. Methodology: This cross-sectional study assessed self-perception of body image body mass index (BMI) and compared the agreement between actual and perceived BMI among Saudi female adults at Princess Nourah University (PNU) in Riyadh. A total of 336 participants aged 18-50 years were recruited by randomly selecting one of the three colleges in PNU and from among the workers in the selected college. A structured self-administered questionnaire was used to obtain socio-demographic information weight perceptions body satisfaction and media influence on body image. Participants had to give best description of your perceived weight and height�. Results: Majority of the participants were aged 18-29 years and unmarried. Mean BMI was 26.19.41 kg/m2 and more than half of the participants (55.7) belonging to 55-80 kg weight range were overweight. Their mean BMI by actual measurement was 24.28.26 kg/m2 while their self-estimated BMI also fell in the normal BMI category. Cohens Kappa K value of 0.635 indicated a good agreement between the actual and perceived BMI categories. Positive body image perception was given by 68.6 of the participants; 83.9 felt appearance was very important in the context of body image perception; 47.1 agreed that changing their abdominal part was what they wanted to change most while 52.8 opted to lose weight in improving their appearance. Conclusion: Overall an underestimation of body weight in terms of BMI was found among the participants. Such misconceptions should be addressed in view of the high obesity prevalence in Saudi Arabia.

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Item Type:	Article
AGROVOC Term:	Women
AGROVOC Term:	Womens organizations
AGROVOC Term:	Colleges
AGROVOC Term:	Questionnaires
AGROVOC Term:	Random sampling
AGROVOC Term:	Body measurements
AGROVOC Term:	Perception
AGROVOC Term:	Body mass
AGROVOC Term:	Body size
AGROVOC Term:	Body weight
Depositing User:	Ms. Suzila Mohamad Kasim
Last Modified:	24 Apr 2025 06:29
URI:	http://webagris.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/24728

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