Body fat and muscularity dissatisfaction are not prospectively associated with psychological wellbeing among sexual minority men: A case for separating within- and between-person variation in examinations of body image phenomena and their outcomes

Abstract

Extensive cross-sectional research reports that body fat and muscularity dissatisfaction contribute to negative psychological outcomes among sexual minority men; however, longitudinal models are necessary for accurately quantifying the strength and direction of these relationships. We investigated the bidirectional longitudinal relationships of body fat and muscularity dissatisfaction with psychological quality of life among 2953 sexual minority men using random intercept cross-lagged panel models. Consistent with existing literature, we found that higher average muscularity and body fat dissatisfaction were associated with higher average psychological quality of life impairment between-pers..