Men’s Body Image: The Effects of an Unhealthy Body Image on Psychological, Behavioral, and Cognitive Health

Abstract

In the past two decades, growing empirical efforts have illuminated the need to understand body image disturbances and preoccupations associated with the male experience. Scholars, practitioners, and more recently, public policy are increasingly interested in the nature, causes, and consequences of men's body image apprehensions and weight concerns. This accession is largely due to the fact that men are progressively becoming more visible in popular culture (especially through exceedingly lean and muscular depictions) and concurrently, severe body image-related disorders such as anorexia nervosa among men are on the rise. This chapter aims to provide a review of the consequences associated with men's unhealthy body image including the psychological (e.g., weight distortions and emotional valence), behavioral (e.g., dieting/fasting, substance use, and cosmetic surgery), and cognitive health outcomes particular to the male experience (e.g., appearance schemas, cognitive performance, and cognitive load/malnutrition on cognitive functioning).