The figure rating scale (FRS), also known as the Stunkard scale, is a psychometric measurement originally developed in 1983 to communicate about the unknown weights of a research subject's absent relatives,Cardinal, T.M., Karciroti, N., & Lumeng, J.C. (2006). The figure rating scale as an index of weight status of women on videotape. Obesity, 14(12), 2132-2135. and since adapted to assess body image.Grogan, S.(2009). Routledge: New York. The scale presents nine male and nine female schematic silhouettes, ranging from extreme thinness to extreme obesity.Stunkard, A., Sorenson, T., & Schulsinger, F. (1983). Use of Danish adoption register for the study of obesity and thinness. In S. Kety, L.P. Rowland, R.L. Sidman, & S.W. Matthysse (Eds.), The genetics of neurological and psychiatric disorders. New York: Raven. 115-120. For research purposes, each participant is asked to self-select the silhouette that best indicates his or her current body size and the silhouette that reflects his or her ideal body size (IBS).
Reliability and validity Researchers assigned six specific instructions to ask of their participants during figure selection: (1) choose your ideal figure; (2) choose the figure that reflects how you think you look; (3) choose the figure that reflects how you feel most of the time; (4) choose the figure that you think is most preferred by men; (5) choose the figure that you think is most preferred by women; and (6) pick the opposite sex figure that you find most attractive.Thompson, J.K., & Altabe, M.N. (1991). Psychometric qualities of the figure rating scale. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 10(5), 615-619. For validity analyses, the figure ratings can be transformed into the three following discrepancy measures: (1) feel minus ideal; (2) think minus ideal; and (3) feel minus think.Thompson, J.K., & Altabe, M.N. (1991). Psychometric qualities of the figure rating scale. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 10(5), 615-619. The instructions developed for these measures may be changed depending on the specific topic of research or category of observation. Depending on its goal, each research study may require a different set of reliability and validity assessments.
Research The figure rating scale has been used in studies on body image, body satisfaction, and eating disorders, and may reveal broad trends in body satisfaction across gender, media, race, and culture.
Most research involving the figure rating scale focuses on observing body dissatisfaction. This research area also focuses primarily on the effects of gender on body dissatisfaction. Jayawardena R, Sooriyaarachchi P, Kagawa M, Hills AP, King NA. Methods to develop figure rating scales (FRS): A systematic review. Diabetes & Metabolic Syndrome: clinical research & reviews. 2021 May 1;15(3):687-93.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.dsx.2021.03.026. In association with the figure rating scale, more research has been conducted on female body image. Studies of body dissatisfaction have shown a woman will tend to choose an ideal body size smaller than her current body size.Cororve Fingeret, M., Gleaves, D., & Pearson, C. (2004). On the Methodology of Body Image Assessment: the use of figural rating scales to evaluate body dissatisfaction and the ideal body standards of women. Body Image, 2, 207-212 This discrepancy between the two figure selections indicates body dissatisfaction. A high level of body dissatisfaction can lead to eating disorders or depression.
The figure rating scale has also been used to show that the media is an important factor in body dissatisfaction.Bissell, K. L. (2004b). What do these messages really mean? Sports media exposure, sports participation, and body image distortion in women between the ages of 18 and 75. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 81(1), 108-123. Research suggests that in media, women are mostly influenced by the thin ideal body typeBissell, K., & Rask, A. (2010). Real women on real beauty: Self-discrepancy, internalization of the thin ideal, and perceptions of attractiveness and thinness in Dove's Campaign for Real Beauty. International Journal of Advertising, 29(4), 643-668. doi:10.2501/S026504871020138 whereas men are mostly influenced by a muscular build.Leit, R. A., & Pope Jr., H. G. (2001). Cultural expectations of muscularity in men: The evolution of playgirl centerfolds. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 29(1), 90-93. When studied in college women, body image perceptions vary across races, with African-American women choosing larger ideal body sizes than Caucasian and Asian women.Gluck, M. E., & Geliebter, A. (2002). Racial/ethnic differences in body image and eating behaviors. Eating behaviors, 3(2), 143-151. The figure rating scale has been translated into multiple languages.Scagliusi, F. B., Alvarenga, M., Polacow, V. O., Cordás, T. A., de Oliveira Queiroz, G. K., Coelho, D., ... & Lancha, A. H. (2006). Concurrent and discriminant validity of the Stunkard's figure rating scale adapted into Portuguese. Appetite, 47(1), 77-82. Korean women are more dissatisfied with their bodies due to the pressures of thinness that exist in that particular culture.Jung, J., & Forbes, G. (2006). Multidimensional assessment of body dissatisfaction and disordered eating in Korean and US college women: A comparative study. Sex Roles, 55(1/2), 39-50. doi:10.1007/s11199-006-9058-3 Australian women feel more body dissatisfaction than Hong Kong women.Lake, A. J., & Staiger, P. K. (2000). Effect of Western Culture on Women's Attitudes to Eating and Perceptions of Body Shape. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 27(1), 83-89.
Correlated measurements Results from figure observations have been applied to other scales in order to assess body dissatisfaction and eating disorders. These scales provide more data that can assist researchers in determining why an individual will select a particular silhouette on the figure rating scale.
The Eating Disorder Inventory (EDI) assesses various aspects of eating disorders.Garner, D.M., Olmstead, M.A., & Polivy, J. (1983). Development and validation of a multidimensional eating disorder inventory for anorexia nervosa and bulimia. International Journal of Eating Disorders,2, 15-34. The Bulimia scale (B) provides seven item measures that analyze the symptoms of bulimia such as binging or purging.Jung, J., & Forbes, G. (2006). Multidimensional assessment of body dissatisfaction and disordered eating in Korean and US college women: A comparative study. Sex Roles, 55(1/2), 39-50. doi:10.1007/s11199-006-9058-3 The Drive for Thinness scale (DT) consists of seven items that measure the intensity of an individual's desire to lose weight or fear of gaining weight.Sands, R. (2000). Reconceptualization of body image and drive for thinness. International Journal of Eating Disorders, 28(4), 397-407. The Body Dissatisfaction (BD) Scale consists of nine items and measures the extent to which individuals are satisfied with specific parts of the body.Bissell, K. L. (2004). Sports model/sports mind: The relationship between entertainment and sports media exposure, sports participation, and body image distortion in Division 1 female athletes. Mass Communication & Society, 7(4), 453-472.Bissell, K. L., & Zhou, P. (2004). Must-see TV or ESPN: Entertainment and sports media exposure and body-image distortion in college women. Journal of Communication, 54(1), 5-21. This scale has been used in conjunction with the figure rating scale in order to observe if an individual's sensitivity to a particular body part explains his or her choice of silhouette. The Body-Esteem Scale for Adolescents and Adults (BESAA) consists of twenty-three statements that measure an individual's general feelings about his or her physical appearance.Jung, J., & Forbes, G. (2006). Multidimensional assessment of body dissatisfaction and disordered eating in Korean and US college women: A comparative study. Sex Roles, 55(1/2), 39-50. doi:10.1007/s11199-006-9058-3 The Male Body Attitudes Scale (MBAS) consists of 24 items and assesses the three dimensions of body attitude in men (muscularity, low body fat, and height).
Applied theoretical frameworks In order to properly use this type of measurement, it is important to understand how researchers have applied theoretical frameworks. This scale is most associated with body image research. Researchers conducting observations in this area will also draw on theories from psychology and communications to understand why an individual will choose a certain silhouette to represent his or her own body type.
Social comparison theory suggests that an individual will compare his or her own physical appearance to the body images presented in the media.Festinger, L. (1954). A theory of social comparison processes. Human Relations, 7, 117-140. Researchers have used this theory in association with the figure rating scale.Botta, R. A. (2000). The mirror of television: A comparison of black and white adolescents' body image. Journal of Communication, 50(3), 144.Northup, T. (2012). The role of image body size, race, and familiarity on subsequent evaluations of the self. Southwestern Mass Communication Journal, 27(3), 1-33.
Self-discrepancy theory distinguishes among three domains of the self: the actual self, the ideal self, and the ought self.Harrison, K., Taylor, L. D., & Marske, A. L. (2006). Women's and men's eating behavior following exposure to ideal-body images and text. Communication Research, 33(6), 507-529.Veale, D., Kinderman, P., Riley, S., & Lambrou, C. (2003). Self-dicrepancy in body dysmorphic disorder. British Journal of Clinical Psychology, 42, 157-169.Bissell, K., & Rask, A. (2010). Real women on real beauty: Self-discrepancy, internalisation of the thin ideal, and perceptions of attractiveness and thinness in Dove's Campaign for Real Beauty. International Journal of Advertising, 29(4), 643-668. doi:10.2501/S026504871020138 The individual may choose a separate silhouette for each domain of the self.
Limitations Since the scale's development in 1983, alternative body image measurements have been created for research in this area. The line-drawn silhouettes provided in the scale may not provide a clear presentation of the average human body. As the silhouettes in the scale shift from very thin to very obese, the figures gain more in the middle of the body, which may not reflect the way all bodies gain weight. Some individuals may have broader shoulders or wider hips than in the images provided in the scale; therefore, participants may have a more difficult time choosing the appropriate figures to represent their physical appearances. Research has also translated this scale into computer rendered images and photographic images with real people.Swami, V., Salem, N., Furnham, A., & Tovée, M. J. (2008). Initial examination of the validity and reliability of the female Photographic Figure Rating Scale for body image assessment. Personality and Individual Differences, 44(8), 1752-1761. These three-dimensional images are able to depict a more realistic presentation of different body types.
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