Body esteem in Chinese adolescents: effect of gender, age, and weight.

This study examined the associations of body esteem with gender, age, and Body Mass Index (BMI) among 905 Hong Kong adolescents using the Body-Esteem Scale (BES). Older age, male gender and lower BMI were associated with better body esteem. Multiple regression analyses indicated significant main effects of gender, age and weight on BES-Total. Significant interaction effects of gender × BMI and gender × age × BMI were also found on BES-Weight (beta = -0.149, p = .028) and BES-Total (beta = -0.139, p = .044). Improvement of body esteem with age may be associated with age-related BMI differences.