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Stigma-based peer aggression and social status in middle adolescence: the unique implications of weight-related aggression

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Stigma-based peer aggression and social status in middle adolescence: the unique implications of weight-related aggression

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Content STIGMA-BASED PEER AGGRESSION AND SOCIAL STATUS IN MIDDLE
ADOLESCENCE:
THE UNIQUE IMPLICATIONS OF WEIGHT-RELATED AGGRESSION
by
Hannah Leigh Fritz
A Thesis Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE USC DORNSIFE COLLEGE OF LETTERS, ARTS AND SCIENCES
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
MASTER OF ARTS
(PSYCHOLOGY )
August 2021
Copyright 2021 Hannah Leigh Fritz

ii

Table of Contents
List of Tables…………………………………………………………………………………......iii

List of Figures………………………………………………………………………………...…..iv

Abstract…………………………………………………………………………………………....v

Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………..1
Weight-Related Aggression in Middle Adolescence……………………………………...2
Peer Aggression and Popularity…………………………………………………………...4
Gender as a Moderator…………………………………………………………………….5
Ethnicity as a Moderator…………………………………………………………………..7
The Current Study…………………………………………………………………………9

Method………………………………………………………………………………………….....9
Overview………………………………………………………………………………......9
Participants…………………………………………………………………………….....10
Procedure………………………………………………………………………………...11
Measures………………………………………………………………………….……...11
Popularity, Weight-Related Aggression, and Relational Aggression……………11
Body Mass Index………………………………………………………………...12

Results……………………………………………………………………………………………12
Missing Values…………………………………………………………………………...13
Descriptive Analyses and Bivariate Correlations………………………………………..13
Inferential Statistical Analyses…………………………………………………………..14
Weight-Related Aggression, Popularity, and Global Aggression……………….14
Moderation Analyses…………………………………………………………….15

Discussion………………………………………………………………………………………..16
Unique Contributions of Weight-Related Aggression…………………………………...16
Weight-Related Aggression and Social Status Over Time………………………………17
Body Mass Index and Weight-Related Aggression Over Time…………………………18
Gender, Weight-Related Aggression, and Social Status…………………………………20
Ethnicity, Weight-Related Aggression, and Social Status……………………………….20
Limitations and Future Directions……………………………………………………….22
Conclusion……………………………………………………………………………….23

References……………………………………………………………………………………….25

Appendices………………………………………………………………………………………33
Appendix A: Tables……………………………………………………………………..33
Appendix B: Figures…………………………………………………………………….35

iii
List of Tables

Table Page

1 Means and Standard Deviations……………………………………………………..33

2 Bivariate Correlations…………………………………………………………….….33

3 Fit Indices for Moderation Models…………………………………………………..34

iv
List of Figures

Figure Page

1 Cross Panel Regression Model with Weight-Related Aggression, Popularity, Global
Aggression, and BMI………………………………………………………………..35

2 Cross Panel Regression Model with Weight-Related Aggression and Popularity….36

v

Abstract
The present short-term prospective study examines the association between weight-
related peer aggression (i.e., aggression that targets deviation from the norm in body weight) and
social status among middle adolescents (ages 14-17). Previous literature has focused primarily
on the type of aggression (i.e., the ways in which aggression is expressed), but more recent
attention has turned to the content of the aggression (i.e., what the aggression targets).
Aggression that targets the victim’s membership in a stigmatized identity group, such as weight-
related aggression, has been shown to predict poorer outcomes among victims (Russell et al.,
2012). Research into the unique psychosocial implications of perpetration of stigma-based
aggression is still lacking in the extant literature. We investigated the extent to which
involvement in weight-related aggression makes distinctive contributions to adolescents’
popularity at school, both cross-sectionally and longitudinally, in a sample of Latinx and Asian
American youth. We then explored the moderating roles of gender and ethnicity in these
associations. Inferential statistics were conducted with a series of simultaneous multivariate
linear regression models in SPSS Amos (Version 27; IMB, 2020). Our findings suggest that
weight-related aggression may be used as a time-limited strategy to boost status within the peer
group. In addition, we identified a preliminary and unhypothesized positive longitudinal
association between BMI and subsequent weight-related aggression that may highlight differing
paths toward engagement in weight-related aggression for youth of varying body sizes. Contrary
to our hypotheses, significant moderation was not observed by gender or ethnicity.
Keywords: weight-related aggression, stigma-based aggression, social status, peer
aggression

1
Stigma-Based Peer Aggression and Social Status in Middle Adolescence: The Unique
Implications of Weight-Related Aggression

Middle adolescence is a sensitive developmental period in which concerns about body
image, social comparison, and position within the peer group are particularly salient (Ayala et
al., 2007; Festinger, 1954; George & Franko, 2010; Morrison et al., 2004; Robinson et al., 1996).
Weight-related aggression is stigma-based aggression that targets a victim’s body weight that
deviates from the mean. The content of weight-related aggression, like other forms of
stigmatizing aggression, can be expressed through various subtypes of aggression such as
relational (e.g., gossiping about peers’ weight) and overt (e.g., beating up overweight peers;
Eisenberg et al., 2003; Taylor, 2011). This phenomenon is quite common during adolescence;
about 30% of youth in grades 7-12 experience weight-related peer victimization (Eisenberg et
al., 2003). The high prevalence of aggression with weight-related content during middle
adolescence is likely due to the heightened awareness of body image and self-consciousness,
prioritization of social status, and increased peer aggression that mark this age group (Cillessen
& Mayeux, 2004; Crockett & Losoff, 1984; Rankin et al., 2004; Rose et al., 2004; Taylor, 2011).
Much of the extant literature on weight-related aggression is primarily concerned with
victims. For example, weight-related victimization has been linked to poor psychological
outcomes, including disordered eating cognitions, depression, low self-esteem, suicidality, and
poor physical health (e.g., Benas & Gibb, 2008; Duarte et al., 2015; Eisenberg et al., 2003;
Greenleaf et al., 2012; Puhl et al., 2017). Significantly less attention has been paid to the
psychosocial outcomes of youth who perpetrate weight-related aggression in the peer group.
The association between peer aggression and popularity has been clearly documented
(e.g. Cillessen & Mayeux, 2004), but previous studies have focused primarily on the type of
aggression without consideration of its content. The type of aggression relates to how the

2
aggression is perpetrated (e.g., gossiping, teasing, exclusion, hitting, pushing), whereas the
content of the aggression is concerned with what the aggression is about (e.g., weight,
race/ethnicity, sexual or gender minority status). Aggression with weight-related content is
particularly salient in middle adolescence (Taylor, 2011) due to the heightened concerns about
body image that mark this developmental period (Guaraldi et al., 1999; Hargreaves &
Tiggemann, 2006). Our presumption is that weight-related aggression will have unique
implications for popularity that have not yet been accounted for in studies that examine the type
of aggression, but not its specific content.
Additionally, research on peer aggression, particularly that of weight-related aggression,
among Latinx and Asian American adolescents is limited. According to the 2010 United States
census data, the Hispanic population accounted for more than half of the total population growth
between 2000 and 2010 (Ennis et al., 2011), and the Asian American population is growing at
four times the rate of the national population (Hoeffel et al., 2012). These groups also have
distinctive cultural values and group norms with regard to body image and weight (Anderson &
Skemp, 2012; Nasser et al., 2001; Robinson et al., 1996) that likely have impacts on the ways in
which these youth engage in weight-related aggression for social status gains. Clearly, these are
large and growing populations with cultural variations that should be considered more
thoroughly in the peer relations literature. The present study examines the social implications of
weight-related aggression in a unique sample in which Latinx and Asian American youth each
make up approximately half of the full sample.
Weight-Related Aggression in Middle Adolescence
As youth transition from childhood into early adolescence, peer aggression becomes a
prominent tool for establishing and maintaining social status as awareness of social order

3
increases (Crocket & Losoff, 1984; Pellegrini & Long, 2002). Middle adolescence is marked by
an increase in the use of peer aggression (Hawley, 1999), which becomes associated with
popularity during this developmental period (Cillessen & Mayeux, 2004; Sandstrom, 2011).
Much of the extant literature focuses principally on subtypes of peer aggression in adolescence,
most often overt (e.g., hitting, punching, threatening) and relational (e.g., gossiping, excluding).
More recent attention has been paid to the content of aggression, rather than just the type of
aggression alone. Aggression that targets the victim’s membership in a stigmatized identity
group has been shown to predict poorer psychological, academic, and physical health outcomes
than non-stigma-based aggression (Russell et al., 2012). Additional research that closely
examines the content of aggression is critical in understanding the mechanisms and dynamics of
peer aggression in the adolescent social system.
Weight-related peer aggression has been recognized as an important type of stigma-based
aggression (e.g. Neumark-Sztainer et al., 1998; Rosenthal & Starks, 2015; Strauss & Pollack,
2003; Taylor, 2011; van den Berg et al., 2008). Weight-related content is particularly salient
during adolescence due to heightened concerns about body image and weight that are associated
with this age group (Guaraldi et al., 1999; Hargreaves & Tiggemann, 2006). Physical size and
shape and psychophysiological experiences can change rapidly during middle adolescence, and
increases in weight control practices such as unhealthy eating behaviors and the use of dieting
products to lose fat or gain muscle mass are common (Morrison et al., 2004). Middle adolescents
are also prone to social comparison with peers, low self-esteem, and body dissatisfaction
(Festinger, 1954; Morrison et al., 2004; Taylor, 2011). In addition, divergence from the socially-
defined body shape norm is associated with social stigma that can have pernicious effects on
adolescents’ position in the peer system (Jacobs et al., 2020). Taken together, these findings

4
suggest that concerns about physical appearance, particularly with regard to how an individual’s
shape and size relate to peers, are highly salient during adolescence.
Existing literature primarily focuses on targets of weight-related aggression and the
numerous negative outcomes that victims experience. Considerably less attention has been paid
to how youths’ use of weight-related aggression impacts their social status in the peer group. The
present study expands upon the current literature to examine associations between perpetration of
weight-related aggression and popularity across middle adolescence.
Peer Aggression and Popularity
During adolescence, youth become increasingly aware of the status afforded to different
groups in the peer system and become more motivated to belong to the high status group
(Brown, 2011; Eder, 1985; LaFontana & Cillessen, 2010; Wiseman, 2002). Hawley (1999)
frames competition for social dominance, a key feature of popularity, in the evolutionary context
of social resource acquisition. Socially dominant youth typically belong to the popular group and
are highly visible, attractive, and serve as trendsetters in the peer system (Adler & Adler, 1998;
Bellmore et al., 2011; Lease et al., 2002; Miller-Johnson et al., 2003). Youth who engage in peer
aggression do so in an effort to gain social resources and improve or solidify their position within
the social hierarchy (Hawley, 1999).
High social status is also strongly associated with adherence to group norms. In order to
be perceived as part of the popular clique and trusted by high status group leaders, youth must
engage in expected norms and behaviors (Brown, 2011). In fact, the degree to which an
individual adheres to group norms contributes significantly to their level of status within the
popular group (Brown, 2011; Wiseman, 2002). Because popular youth engage in a greater
amount of aggressive behavior in comparison to their less popular counterparts (deBruyn &

5
Cillessen, 2006; Hawley, 1999; Sandstrom & Cillessen, 2006), peer aggression becomes the
popular group norm and youth must engage in these behaviors in order to gain and maintain
membership.
Weight status that diverges from the norm represents a failure or inability to conform to
the dominant group’s body type ideal. By engaging in weight-related aggression, popular youth
distance themselves from “others” who they identify as diverging from the desirable social
norms of the high status group (Taylor, 2011). In this way, youth solidify themselves as members
of the popular group by adhering to group norms with regard to perpetration of aggression and
alignment with body weight ideals. Thus, in middle adolescence, weight-related aggression
becomes a tool used to gain and maintain membership in the popular group.
Perpetration of weight-related aggression is likely a key aspect of participation in the
high status group, given the importance of group norms, weight concerns, and aggression for
social dominance among popular youth. We hypothesize that weight-related aggression will have
unique implications for social status that are not accounted for by assessments of aggression type
that are not specific to content. Therefore, we predict that weight-related peer aggression will be
positively associated with popularity both cross-sectionally and longitudinally, even when type
of aggression (i.e., relational and overt) is controlled.
Gender as a Moderator
Concerns and ideals about weight, changes in body shape, and body image often affect
boys and girls quite differently during adolescence (Agliata et al., 2007; Xie et al., 2010). These
gendered differences may in turn affect the ways in which boys and girls perpetrate weight-
related aggression for social gains. By engaging in weight-related aggression, youth participate
in the high status group norms and may be more likely to be perceived as popular among peers.

6
However, we posit that weight-related aggression will differentially affect social status among
boys and girls due to the effect of gender on perceptions of body image and normative behavior
among individuals in each group.
Body image and weight-related concerns are more salient for girls than boys during
middle adolescence (Agliata et al., 2007). Adolescent girls report higher rates of body
dissatisfaction associated with being overweight than boys, although the prevalence of
overweight status is significantly lower among girls (Xie et al., 2010). Some researchers suggest
that this is due to the significant decrease in self-esteem and increase in preoccupation with
social status that is associated with girls’ transition from childhood into early adulthood (Eder,
1985). Adolescent girls are also subject to more public body scrutiny by peers than boys (Taylor,
2011). The combination of these factors suggests that girls have strong associations between
body weight and social standing during the adolescent developmental period.
In addition, the use of relational aggression, through which weight-related content is most
commonly expressed (Taylor, 2011), may be more important for girls than for boys if the
intention of such aggression is to vie for power and status in the peer system. Although previous
studies have not examined the specific content of this aggression, relational aggression has been
shown to predict peer nominated popularity among adolescent girls (Cillessen & Mayeux, 2004;
Rose et al., 2004). During adolescence, girls engage in relational aggression that targets
competitors in the peer system who pose a perceived threat to social status based on
attractiveness, desirability among potential dating partners, and opportunities for sexual
exploration (Houser et al., 2015; Mayeux et al., 2008; Taylor, 2011; Villaincourt, 2013). Given
this pattern of findings, we predict that the association between weight-related aggression and

7
popularity will be moderated by gender such that the association will be stronger for girls than
boys.
Ethnicity as a Moderator
Concerns about body image in relation to peers and physical shape and size vary across
ethnic groups, and these factors may subsequently impact youth’s involvement in weight-related
aggression. In addition, ethnic background of the individual, as well as the ethnic composition of
the peer group, has been shown to affect social group affiliation (e.g., Bellmore et al., 2011;
Rock et al., 2011). However, the ways in which weight-related aggression and social standing
interact as a function of ethnicity remains largely understudied, particularly among Latinx and
Asian American adolescents.
Previous research has highlighted the impact of the ethnic composition of the peer group
on considerations of ethnicity and social standing. Popularity is characterized by power and
visibility, features associated with greater numerical representation in the peer group (Brown,
2011; Lease et al., 2002). Youth belonging to an ethnic group in the numerical minority tend to
be perceived as less popular by peers than their counterparts belonging to the group in the
numerical majority (Bellmore et al., 2011; Nesdale, 1999; Rock et al., 2011). The current study’s
sample is unique in that Latinx and Asian Americans, groups typically in the numerical minority
on the national level and in previous peer relations studies, are represented in approximately
equal proportions (48.8% Latinx, 51.2% Asian American). Therefore, this study is well-
positioned to examine the ways in which the associations between weight-related aggression and
social status may differ among Latinx and Asian American middle adolescents without the
potential confound of numerical minority status or juxtaposition of the national majority ethnic
group (i.e. European Americans).

8
Ethnic differences exist regarding body size and image that may contribute to
associations between weight-related aggression and popularity. In general, Latinx individuals
tend to idealize a larger body size, accept more variation or divergence from the norm,
experience less body dissatisfaction, and develop fewer eating pathologies in comparison to
other ethnic groups (Nasser et al., 2001). Asian American adolescents tend to adopt very high
standards for themselves and report critical evaluations with regard to group ideals and social
image (Anderson & Skemp, 2012). In a study of Latinx, Asian American, and European
American adolescents, Latinx youth reported the least body dissatisfaction, European Americans
the highest, and Asian American youth between the two (Robinson et al., 1996).
Robinson et al. (1996) also demonstrated that body mass index (BMI) relative to the peer
group is associated with body dissatisfaction. Regardless of ethnicity, youth who were in the
thinnest 25% of the class reported the highest level of body dissatisfaction (Robinson et al.,
1996), which has subsequently been linked to lower general self-esteem (Tiggeman, 2005). In
addition, low self-esteem and low self-rated physical attractiveness are associated with
engagement in adolescent peer aggression (O’Moore & Kirkham, 2001; Byrne, 1994).
Importantly, these studies assessed self-reported engagement in peer aggression, but did not
consider the content of aggression specifically.
According to these findings, lower actual body weight relative to peers may be an
important predictor of self-esteem among middle adolescents, which may also be associated with
increased weight-related aggression given that aggressive youth report concern about physical
attractiveness. We predict that the relationship between weight-related aggression and social
status will be moderated by ethnicity such that the association will be stronger among Asian

9
Americans, who are typically smaller in body size with less variability than their Latinx
counterparts (Nasser et al., 2001; Xie et al., 2010).
The Current Study
The purpose of the current study is to examine the relationship between weight-related
aggression and popularity over time among Latinx and Asian American middle adolescents. We
aim to understand whether the stigma-based content of weight-related aggression (i.e.,
aggression that targets peers’ deviation from the norm with regard to body weight) contributes
something unique to the well-established association between peer aggression and social status
during this age developmental period. We predict that weigh-related aggression will
independently contribute to aggressors’ social status above and beyond global indicators of peer
aggression that do not take content into account.
In addition, we examine the moderating role of gender and ethnicity in the relationship
between weight-related aggression and social status across time. We hypothesize that the
association between weight-related aggression and popularity will be moderated by gender such
that the association will be stronger among girls than boys, and by ethnicity demonstrating a
stronger association among Asian American than Latinx adolescents.
Method
Overview
The current short-term prospective study was conducted as part of the Academic Success
Project, a longitudinal study of adolescents’ social and academic adjustment. The participating
high school is located in a semi-urban area of Los Angeles with approximately 1330 9
th
and 10
th

grade students (45.3% Latinx, 41.6% Asian American, 6.2% Caucasian, 7% other or mixed
ethnicity) enrolled at the time of data collection (EdData, 2019). Seventy-three percent of the

10
students enrolled in the school at the time of data collection were eligible for free or reduced
price meals, and the surrounding area was considered economically disadvantaged; 22.5% of
children were living in low-income working families, and 22.9% did not have secure parental
employment (KidsData, n.d.).
Participants
Participants were recruited during the 2011 spring semester (T1) of 9
th
and 10
th
grade in
the participating high school. Limited English language proficiency and enrollment in special
education were a priori exclusion criteria for eligibility to participate in the study. Of the 1151
students eligible to participate, 70% returned positive parental consent. There were 682
participants who assented and were present for data collection at T1; 340 adolescents (M age =
14.60, SD = .55; 57.1% girls ) in the 9
th
grade and 342 adolescents (M age =15.60 , SD= .56;
55.0% girls) in the 10
th
grade. The second wave of data collection took place one year later in the
spring of 2012 (T2). 80.7% (n=550) of the original sample at T1 was retained. Participants at T2
were 550 students, 275 (M age = 15.60, SD = .56; 55.7% girls) in the 10
th
grade and 276 (M age
= 16.33, SD = .50; 54.1% girls) in the 11
th
grade.
A clear majority of participants in the full sample self-identified as Latinx or Asian
American. Because the current study is interested specifically in Latinx and Asian American
adolescents, analyses were restricted to those groups. Students who identified as both Latinx and
Asian American (i.e., multi-ethnic) were excluded from analyses. In addition, only participants
who had gender data at either timepoint were included in the analyses. A final sample of 734
students was attained (Latinx 48.8%, 51.2% Asian American; 44.3% boys, 55.7% girls).

11
Procedure
All measures were administered in the Spring semester by trained research assistants.
Identical procedures were used in both waves of data collection. Students completed peer
nomination and self-report inventories in classrooms during a school-based data collection.
Graduate and undergraduate researchers read aloud standardized instructions and students were
paced through the questionnaire so that each section was completed together with the group.
Assistance was provided to students if necessary. Participants were reminded throughout the
survey administration that their responses were confidential.
Measures
Popularity, Weight-Related Aggression, and Relational Aggression
Popularity, weight-related aggression, and global aggression were each assessed using
peer nomination inventories. Participants were then presented with randomized lists of
approximately 50 participating grademates to complete the peer nomination items on the
questionnaire (Bellmore et al., 2010). Each peer nomination item was presented individually
with instructions that the participant could select up to nine peers on each item, if applicable.
There was a chance that a small number of participants could have received a list with their own
name included for nomination. Self-nominations were removed and total number of possible
nominations was adjusted prior to variable calculation.
The peer nomination inventory included single items to assess popularity (“students who
are popular”) and weight-related aggression (“students who pick on others for being too fat or
too scrawny”). Each participant’s total number of peer nominations for popularity and weight-
related aggression were each summed and divided by the total number of raters, resulting a
proportion score for each variable.

12
The inventory also included two items each to assess relational aggression (“students who
try to be mean to other students by ignoring them or excluding them”; “students who gossip
about other students”) and overt aggression (“students who hit or push others”; “students who
start fights with other students by pushing or punching them”). Participant responses for both of
the two items contributing to relational and overt aggression respectively were summed and
standardized within list in order to develop a single relational aggression and a single overt
aggression proportion score for each individual. Relational and overt aggression proportion
scores were then averaged to obtain a composite global aggression proportion score for each
participant.
Body Mass Index
Body mass index (BMI) was assessed by asking participants to self-report height (in feet
and inches) and weight (in pounds). Feet and inches were then converted into meters, and pounds
converted into kilograms, in order to determine BMI (kg/m
2
) for each participant. We were
concerned that self-report BMI data might incorporate systematic biases. Accordingly, we also
obtained BMI data for a subset of participants from school records. School record data were only
available for 27.4% of the full sample (all of the participants who had visited the school nurse
and been weighed). Inter-informant agreement was high (r=.89, p<.001), supporting the
convergent validity of the self-report estimate.
Results
Prior to conducting substantive analyses, variable distributions were examined for
violations of normality. Positive skew and leptokurtosis are common among peer nomination
measures, and this pattern was observed among the current study’s popularity, global aggression,
and weight-related aggression variables. Arcsine transformations were applied to the peer

13
nomination variables to normalize the data and reduce the effect of extreme values. For
proportion scores in which scores of 0% are common, such as the peer nomination measures
used in this study, arcsine has been shown to be the preferred variance-stabilizing transformation
(Cohen & Cohen, 1983). After transformation, the few remaining extreme outliers were removed
from the peer nomination variables
1
. Transformation was not necessary for the BMI variables at
either timepoint.
Missing Values
The data were examined for missing values prior to conducting substantive analyses. Of
particular concern to this study was whether the retained participants from T1 to T2 differ
systematically from the attrited participants. Missing data were examined for violations of
Missing Completely at Random (MCAR) and Missing at Random (MAR) using Little’s MCAR
Test (Little, 1988). Results of Little’s MCAR Test (X
2
=116.903, df=58, p<.001) indicated that
missingness was not completely random, that is, it was non-ignorable. To handle this pattern of
missingness, substantive analyses were run in IBM SPSS Statistics AMOS (Version 27; IBM,
2020), which imputes data using Full Information Maximum Likelihood (FIML).
Descriptive Analyses and Bivariate Correlations
Descriptive statistics were examined in IBM SPSS Statistics (Version 26) for all outcome
variables by gender and ethnicity; means and standard deviations are presented in Table 1. Girls
were more likely than boys to be nominated as engaging in weigh-related aggression at both
timepoints, and at T2, girls were more likely to be nominated by peers as engaging in global
aggression than boys. At both timepoints, Asian American participants were more likely than
Latinx participants to be nominated by peers as popular. There was a significant difference

1
We also ran all analyses with outliers included for comparison. There was no significant difference in the pattern
of results.

14
between the means at both timepoints between boys’ and girls’ BMI such that boys had
significantly greater BMI than girls, and between Latinx and Asian American participants such
that Latinx participants had greater BMI than Asian American participants.
Bivariate correlations among all study variables are presented in Table 2. Popularity and
weight-related aggression were positively correlated at both timepoints, as were popularity and
global aggression. Weight-related aggression and global aggression were positively correlated at
both timepoints. BMI and weight-related aggression were moderately positively correlated at T1,
but no correlation was found at T2. BMI and popularity were moderately negatively correlated at
both timepoints.
Inferential Statistical Analyses
Weight-Related Aggression, Popularity, and Global Aggression
We specified a series of simultaneous multivariate linear regression models in SPSS
AMOS (Figure 1; Version 27; IBM, 2020). The full cross-panel model included weight-related
aggression, global aggression, popularity, and BMI at T1 as predictors, and weight-related
aggression, global aggression, popularity, and BMI at T2 as outcome variables
2
. The main effect
model was fully saturated. Therefore, no model fit indices were assessed, and interpretation was
conducted based on individual parameters that pertained to our hypotheses.
Stability across T1 and T2 was moderately high for popularity, global aggression, and
BMI. The corresponding stability for weight-related aggression did not, however, reach
significance. At both timepoints, there was a modest independent cross-sectional covariance
between all three peer nomination variables: weight-related aggression and popularity, global
aggression and popularity, and weight-related aggression and global aggression. Additionally at

2
We also ran the full cross-panel model with relational aggression alone, rather than the composite score for
global aggression presented herein. There was no difference in the pattern of results with this model.

15
T1, BMI cross-sectionally positively covaried with weight-related aggression and negatively
with popularity. No covariance was found between BMI and other study variables at T2.
Weight-related aggression at T1 did not predict popularity at T2, nor did popularity at T1
predict weight-related aggression at T2. However, global aggression at T1 predicted weight-
related aggression at T2, BMI at T1 predict weight-related aggression at T2, and popularity at T1
predicted global aggression at T2. No other predictive relationships were found in the model.
Moderation Analyses
To test the moderating effects of gender and ethnicity on the relationship between
weight-related aggression and popularity across time, we specified two multi-group simultaneous
multivariate regression models in SPSS AMOS (Figure 2; Version 27; IBM, 2020). We
constrained the paths to be equivalent across groups (i.e., boys and girls; Latinx and Asian
American) and compared chi-square model fit statistics of the fully constrained model to fit
when the path of hypothesized moderation was allowed to vary across groups. Chi-square values
for constrained and unconstrained models are presented in Table 3.
Moderation by Gender. We specified a multi-group simultaneous multivariate
regression model (Figure 2) by gender. We compared the model fit indices of the fully
constrained model with parameters held constant across gender groups to the indices when the
paths of interest (i.e., popularity T1 predicting T2 weight-related aggression [Figure 2, W3]; T1
weight-related aggression T2 predicting popularity [Figure 2, W2]) were unconstrained. Model
fit did not significantly differ between the fully constrained model and either of the models when
each of these paths were individually allowed to vary across groups (W2 DX
2
=1.3, n.s.; W3
DX
2
=0.0, n.s.). Therefore, our hypothesis regarding the moderating effect of gender was not
supported.

16
Moderation by Ethnicity. We then specified a second multi-group simultaneous
multivariate regression model (Figure 2) by ethnicity. Again, we compared model fit indices
between the fully constrained model and indices when W2 and W3 paths were individually
allowed to vary across ethnicity groups. Model fit was not significantly different between the
constrained and partially unconstrained models (W2 DX
2
=0.2, n.s.; W3 DX
2
=2.9, n.s). Therefore,
our hypothesis regarding the moderating effect of ethnicity was not supported.
Discussion
The purpose of the current study was to examine the relationship between weight-related
aggression and social status across middle adolescence in a sample of Latinx and Asian
American youth. Previous literature suggests that peer aggression is used as a tool to gain social
status during middle adolescence (Cillessen & Mayeux, 2004; Hawley, 1999). During this
period, youth become increasingly aware of social order and engage in more aggressive
strategies to attain high social status (Cillessen & Mayeux, 2004; Crocket & Losoff, 1984;
Pellegrini & Long, 2002). Simultaneously, adolescence is marked by heightened concerns about
body shape and size, particularly in how one’s own weight compares to others’ and adheres to
the peer group norm (Taylor, 2011; Wang et al., 2006). The current study contributes to the
extant literature by examining the social implications of the stigma-based content of weight-
related aggression in a sample of Latinx and Asian American middle adolescents.
Unique Contributions of Weight-Related Aggression
To date, research on the associations between peer aggression and social status has
largely focused on the type of aggression (e.g., relational and overt aggression), but additional
research is needed to understand the unique implications of the content of that aggression (e.g.,
weight-related). We found that weight-related aggression was cross-sectionally associated with

17
popularity at both waves of data collection, contributing independently to social status above and
beyond the contributions of global aggression (i.e., a measure of the type of aggression without
consideration of content). This pattern of findings suggests that the specific content domain of
weight-related aggression has unique implications for social status in the middle adolescent peer
system. This also indicates that examination of the specific content of peer aggression should be
considered more thoroughly alongside measures of aggressive type in future research.
Weight-Related Aggression and Social Status Over Time
This study sought to expand upon the peer relations literature that has demonstrated an
association between peer aggression and social standing across middle adolescence. We
hypothesized a direct predictive association between weight-related aggression and popularity
between the first and second wave, but this hypothesis was not supported by the data. However,
an interesting pattern of indirect paths between weight-related aggression, popularity, and global
aggression emerged.
Although weight-related aggression was not stable across time, it did independently
contribute to popularity above and beyond global aggression at both waves of data collection. In
addition, global aggression was stable across time. This pattern of findings suggests that the
aggressive strategies middle adolescents engage in may vary from year to year. Youth who have
a reputation for engaging in peer aggression more generally (i.e., global aggression) appear to
maintain that reputation across time. However, weight-related aggression may be used as a time-
limited tool to boost popularity, in addition to more global types of aggression.
Furthermore, global aggression predicted increases in weight-related aggression over
time. Therefore, it may be that youth who engage in weight-related aggression are more likely to
be those who have already been engaged in global aggression. Thus, in its time-limited use,

18
weight-related aggression may serve to intensify the effects of peer aggression on social status
among previously aggressive youth, rather than as an entry point for non-aggressive youth
seeking to gain initial admittance into the popular group.
Finally, our findings demonstrated that popularity was stable and predicted global
aggression later in adolescence. The stability of popularity in our sample is consistent with
previous research suggesting that, by about eighth grade, the hierarchy of popular cliques is
highly stable (Eder, 1985). The predictive association between popularity and global aggression
is also consistent with previous literature suggesting that popular youth are perceived by peers to
be involved in more peer aggression than their less popular peers (Crick & Grotpeter, 1995;
deBruyn & Cillessen, 2006; Hawley, 1999; Sandstrom & Cillessen, 2006). However, the positive
predictive association in our study suggests that popular youth may engage in increasing
amounts of peer aggression over time in order to maintain the perception of high status among
peers.
Taken together, our findings are consistent with previous literature, and expand upon the
current understanding of how specific aggressive strategies are used in the peer system for social
status acquisition and maintenance. Consistent with previous findings, our results indicate that
popular youth are perceived as more globally aggressive, regardless of aggressive content, than
their less popular peers. According to our findings, these youth may engage in increasing
amounts of aggression in order to maintain high social status in the peer hierarchy over time.
Weight-related aggression may be an effective, time-limited strategy to boost social status,
particularly among these youth who are already perceived by peers as aggressive.
Body Mass Index and Weight-Related Aggression Over Time

19
Our results demonstrated an interesting longitudinal association between body mass
index (BMI) and weight-related aggression. Given that these results were not included in the
present study’s original hypotheses, we are cautious in interpreting the findings and recommend
these associations be investigated further in future studies. BMI in the first wave predicted a
modest, but significant, increase in weight-related aggression in the second wave. According to
these findings, youth who have higher body mass are perceived by peers as perpetrating
increased weight-related aggression over time in comparison to youth with lower BMI.
It may be that these youth do in fact engage in greater amounts of weight-related
aggression than their counterparts with lower BMI. Eisenberg et al., (2015) demonstrated that
overweight and obese youth were more likely to be involved in perpetration of peer aggression in
comparison to their non-overweight counterparts. Larger youths’ physical size may serve as an
advantage used to intimidate peers and facilitate involvement in peer aggression. However, these
findings were a bit surprising given that they are contradictory to our theoretical model that links
low BMI with perpetration of peer aggression via low self-esteem and low self-rated physical
attractiveness (Byrne, 1994; O’Moore & Kirkham, 2001; Robinson et al., 1996; Tiggeman,
2005). Importantly, these previous studies have largely examined overt and relational types of
aggression, without consideration of its specific content (Byrne, 1994; Eisenberg et al., 2015;
O’Moore & Kirkham, 2001; Robinson et al., 1996; Tiggeman, 2005). It may be that these
inconsistent findings indicate that the content of aggression has contributed to variations in
psychosocial outcomes in the extant literature, but has not been sufficiently accounted for in
many previous studies. Future investigation is warranted to understand the ways in which the
specific content of peer aggression affects psychosocial outcomes, particularly among subgroups
of adolescent perpetrators (e.g., those with higher relative BMI).

20
Gender, Weight-Related Aggression, and Social Status
Previous literature examining the gender differences in middle adolescence suggests that
concerns about weight and body image are more salient among girls than boys, and girls
experience a greater amount of body dissatisfaction and public body scrutiny compared to boys
(Agliata et al., 2007; Taylor, 2011; Xie et al., 2010). In addition, weight-related aggression is
most commonly expressed through relational aggression, a tool used most prominently by girls
of this age group to vie for power in the social hierarchy (Cillessen & Mayeux, 2004; Rose et al.,
2004). Given these previous findings, our nonsignificant results for gender moderation in the
longitudinal paths between weight-related aggression and popularity were somewhat surprising.
The present study used a bidirectional measure to assess weight-related aggression (i.e.,
participants were asked to nominate peers who “pick on others for being too fat or too
scrawny”). Although this measure served the primary purpose of the study, to assess aggression
that targets deviation from the group norm, the nonsignificant gender moderation finding may be
due to the bidirectionality of this measure. Distinct measures that assess weight-related
aggression that targets peers for being too large separately from targeting peers for being too
small may be more sensitive to gender differences and, therefore, more able to detect gender
moderation. While girls are predominantly concerned with adhering to the “thin ideal,” boys tend
to be more concerned about the “athletic elite” that emphasizes muscularity and denigrates those
who are on either end of the weight range (i.e., too thin or too large; Taylor, 2011). Future
research should continue to assess the use of weight-related aggression as a strategy for social
gains in the context of gender with measures more sensitive to the directionality of targets’ body
weight deviance from the norm.
Ethnicity, Weight-Related Aggression, and Social Status

21
The extant literature on weight-related aggression and social standing among ethnically
diverse adolescents is limited, particularly for Latinx and Asian American youth. We
hypothesized that the association between weight-related aggression and popularity would be
moderated by ethnicity such that Asian Americans would show greater increases in social status
as a function of involvement in weight-related aggression. However, the data did not support this
prediction. The current study was well-positioned to examine these associations among Latinx
and Asian American youth in a sample that did not include a numerical majority. Previous
literature on ethnic group differences in weight-related aggression have commonly involved
samples in which ethnic minority groups were also in the sample’s numerical minority (e.g.
Garandeau et al., 2011; Rock et al., 2011). In addition, associations between numerical minority
status and lower peer ratings of popularity have also been shown (Bellmore et al., 2011; Rock et
al., 2011). The current study’s null findings with regard to moderation by ethnicity may suggest
that the driving factor underpinning previous studies’ findings is numerical minority rather than
ethnicity itself.
Alternatively, generational status and acculturation to European American values may
also be a factor in our study’s results. The majority of the Latinx participants in the present study
were second generation (68.3%), followed by first generation (19.1%), and third generation or
more (12.6%). The Asian American participants had a similar distribution across generational
status; first generation (24.1%), second generation (71.1%), and third generation or more (4.8%).
As ethnic minority youth acculturate, their ideas regarding ideal body shape become increasingly
oriented toward the European American ideals of thinness and muscularity (Ayala et al., 2007;
Nasser et al., 2001; Xie et al., 2010). Therefore, acculturation may increase adolescents’
adherence to European American group norms with regard to body weight, thereby, loosening

22
associations with individual cultural values related to body shape and diminishing the potential
to detect a moderating effect.
Limitations and Future Directions
A primary limitation of the present study is the short-term longitudinal design that only
included two waves of data collection with a full year between assessments. Although our results
demonstrated some promising findings with regard to weight-related aggression, global
aggression, social status, and BMI over time, it is difficult to extrapolate these findings to a
larger scale without a longer timeframe in which to study these patterns. In the present study, the
two-wave design could not address nuances in the timing of the unique contributions of weight-
related aggression to popularity, nor in the relationship between BMI and subsequent increases in
weight-related aggression. However, the present study’s findings do suggest that future research
on these associations is warranted. Future studies that aim to examine these associations should
include additional waves of data collection with shorter periods between assessments in order to
account for shorter-term variations. Shorter time intervals between assessments may prove to be
especially useful given that changes in actual body weight, psychophysiology, concerns about
body shape and size, and social reorganization take place rapidly during middle adolescence
(Morrison et al., 2004).
Furthermore, the current study’s assessment of weight-related aggression was a single,
bidirectional peer nomination item. Although this measure served this study’s primary purpose to
examine deviations from the norm, the bidirectionality of this measurement may have precluded
our ability to assess gender differences in the hypothesized relationships of interest. For example,
given that heaviness is undesirable for both genders, but thinness is also undesirable for boys but
not among girls of this age group (Taylor, 2011), we may have observed a moderation effect if

23
the study had included two-separate unidimensional measures that assessed peer nominations of
weight-related aggression targeting peers who are too fat separately from too thin. In addition,
the weight-related aggression item used the term “pick on,” which does not clearly delineate
between relational and overt expressions of aggression. Future studies should include items that
cover all permutations of aggression targeting large bodies vs. small bodies and relational vs.
overt expressions in order to effectively examine the nuances of how weight-related aggression
manifests in the context of gender.
Finally, we contend that further examination of the social implications of other stigma-
based aggressive content (e.g., aggression targeting race/ethnicity, religious affiliation, gender or
sexual minority status, disability status) is warranted and should be addressed in future peer
relations research. Given our pattern of findings with regard to weight-related aggression, we
posit that other aggressive content that targets peers’ membership in a stigmatized identity group
may also have unique social implications during this developmental period. Furthering the field’s
understanding of how specific aggressive content is used to influence social position can inform
school-based intervention efforts that aim to address discriminatory peer interactions in middle
adolescence.
Conclusion
This study fills an important gap in the literature by examining the ways in which weight-
related peer aggression uniquely contributes to social status across middle adolescence. The
present study establishes that aggressive content that specifically targets peers’ body weight that
deviates from the norm has distinct and important implications for social status. Our findings
suggest that weight-related aggression may be used as a time-limited strategy to boost status
within the peer group. In addition, our results highlighted a preliminary and unhypothesized

24
positive longitudinal association between BMI and subsequent weight-related aggression that
may highlight differing paths toward engagement in weight-related aggression for youth of
varying body sizes. Overall, these results highlight the importance of considering the content of
peer aggression alongside the type, particularly when the content targets victims’ membership in
a stigmatized identity group.

25
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33
APPENDIX A

Table 1
Means and Standard Deviations
Gender Ethnicity
Full Sample (n=734) Boys
(n=325)
Girls
(n=382)
Latinx
(n=358)
Asian American
(n=376)
Variable M (SD) Min Max M (SD) M (SD) M (SD) M (SD)
Popularity (T1) 0.36 (0.29) 0.00 1.28 0.34 (0.28) 0.38 (0.30) 0.33 (0.28) 0.40 (0.29)
**
Popularity (T2)
Global Agg (T1)
Global Agg (T2)
Weight Agg (T1)
Weight Agg (T2)
BMI Y1
BMI Y2

0.40 (0.32)
0.62 (0.33)
0.51 (0.32)
0.09 (0.17)
0.15 (0.20)
22.22 (4.27)
22.56 (4.23)

0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
14.12
14.77
1.45
1.98
2.34
0.94
0.86
41.64
38.77

0.37 (0.31)
0.60 (0.32)
0.48 (0.29)
0.11 (0.18)
0.17 (0.21)
23.05 (4.68)
23.33 (4.45)

0.37 (0.32)
0.64 (0.34)
0.54 (0.34)
*

0.08 (0.16)
*

0.13 (0.19)
*

21.50(3.73)
***

21.89(3.92)
***

0.32 (0.31)
0.65 (0.34)
0.53 (0.32)
0.09 (0.17)
0.16 (0.20)
23.44 (4.52)
23.93 (4.56)

0.41 (0.31)
***
0.60 (0.33)
0.50 (0.32)
0.09 (0.18)
0.14 (0.20)
21.18 (3.74)
***
21.47 (3.60)
***

Note. Popularity, global aggression, and weight-related aggression reflect arc sine-
transformed values. Gender and Ethnicity comparisons were conducted with a series
of paired t-tests. *p < .05, **p < .01, *** p <.001.

Table 2
Bivariate Correlations

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10
1. Popularity (T1) --

2. Popularity (T2) .62
***
--
3. Global Aggression (T1) .50
***
.30
***
--

4. Global Aggression (T2) .36
***
.42
***
.45
**
--

5. Weight-Related Aggression
(T1)
.19
***
.06 .35
**
.12
**
--
6. Weight-Related Aggression
(T2)
.17
***
.22
***
.30
**
.52
**
.14
**
--

7. BMI (T1) -.11
*
-.05

.01

.07 .08
*
.11
*
--
8. BMI (T2) -.07 -.11
**
.02 .03 .13
**
.07 .88
**
--
9. Gender

.07 .00

.05 .08
*
-.08
*
-.10
*
-.18
**
-.17
**
--
10. Ethnicity .12
**
.15
**
-.07 -.05 -.01 -.05 -.26
**
-.29
**
-.02 --
Note. *p < .05. **p < .01. ***p < .001.

34

Table 3
Fit Indices for Moderation Models
Model χ² df
Moderation by Gender
Constrained 16.9 10
W2 unconstrained 15.3 9
W3 unconstrained 16.9 9

Moderation by Ethnicity
Constrained 7.6 10
W2 unconstrained 7.4 9
W3 unconstrained 4.7 9

35
APPENDIX B

Figure 1. Cross panel regression model with weight-related aggression, popularity, global
aggression, and BMI

36

Figure 2. Cross panel regression model with weight-related aggression and popularity. Multi-
group models were conducted using this model to examine the effects of moderation by gender
and ethnicity.

Abstract (if available)

Abstract The present short-term prospective study examines the association between weight-related peer aggression (i.e., aggression that targets deviation from the norm in body weight) and social status among middle adolescents (ages 14-17). Previous literature has focused primarily on the type of aggression (i.e., the ways in which aggression is expressed), but more recent attention has turned to the content of the aggression (i.e., what the aggression targets). Aggression that targets the victim?s membership in a stigmatized identity group, such as weight-related aggression, has been shown to predict poorer outcomes among victims (Russell et al., 2012). Research into the unique psychosocial implications of perpetration of stigma-based aggression is still lacking in the extant literature. We investigated the extent to which involvement in weight-related aggression makes distinctive contributions to adolescents? popularity at school, both cross-sectionally and longitudinally, in a sample of Latinx and Asian American youth. We then explored the moderating roles of gender and ethnicity in these associations. Inferential statistics were conducted with a series of simultaneous multivariate linear regression models in SPSS Amos (Version 27; IMB, 2020). Our findings suggest that weight-related aggression may be used as a time-limited strategy to boost status within the peer group. In addition, we identified a preliminary and unhypothesized positive longitudinal association between BMI and subsequent weight-related aggression that may highlight differing paths toward engagement in weight-related aggression for youth of varying body sizes. Contrary to our hypotheses, significant moderation was not observed by gender or ethnicity.

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Asset Metadata

Creator Fritz, Hannah Leigh (author)

Core Title Stigma-based peer aggression and social status in middle adolescence: the unique implications of weight-related aggression

School College of Letters, Arts and Sciences

Degree Master of Arts

Degree Program Psychology

Degree Conferral Date 2021-08

Publication Date 07/06/2021

Defense Date 04/29/2021

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag OAI-PMH Harvest,peer aggression,social status,stigma-based aggression,weight-related aggression

Format application/pdf (imt)

Language English

Contributor Electronically uploaded by the author (provenance)

Advisor Schwartz, David (committee chair), Moll, Henrike (committee member), Saxbe, Darby (committee member)

Creator Email hannah.l.fritz@gmail.com,hfritz@usc.edu

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-oUC15276670

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Legacy Identifier etd-FritzHanna-9704

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