Personality Typing and Body Dissatisfaction in Korean Young Adults: Which Personality Type Is More Dissatisfied With Their Body Image?

Article information

Psychiatry Investig. 2025;22(2):186-195

Publication date (electronic) : 2025 February 17

doi : https://doi.org/10.30773/pi.2024.0234

Solee Han¹, Hyun Seung Chee^,1,2

¹Department of Psychiatry, Chungnam National University Hospital, Daejeon, Republic of Korea

²Brain Research Institute, Chungnam National University, Daejeon, Republic of Korea

Correspondence: Hyun Seung Chee, MD, PhD Department of Psychiatry, Chungnam National University Hospital, 282 Munhwa-ro, Jung-gu, Daejeon 35015, Republic of Korea Tel: +82-42-280-8291, Fax: +82-42-280-7886, E-mail: ischee@cnu.ac.kr

Received 2024 July 24; Revised 2024 October 15; Accepted 2024 December 5.

Abstract

INTRODUCTION

Individuals universally pursue their perception of beauty and strive to become more attractive [1]. Young adults often adhere to beauty ideals regarding their appearance, with women aspiring to the thin beauty ideal and men to the muscular ideal, resulting in increased self-esteem with higher satisfaction with their body [2]. However, at times, excessive concern about one’s appearance, dissatisfaction with the body, and consequent emotional and psychological distress can occur [3]. Studies targeting the general population indicate that 70%–80% of individuals express dissatisfaction with some aspect of their bodies [4,5]. Considering findings ranging from 11%–72% in women and 8%–61% in men, body dissatisfaction appears pervasive in our society [6].

Body dissatisfaction serves as a risk factor for various mental health issues such as eating disorders [7], mood disorders [8], sexual dysfunction [9], and body dysmorphic disorder [10]. Personality traits influence self-perception [11], making individual personality characteristics crucial in understanding body dissatisfaction [12]. Specifically, personality traits like narcissism [13,14], perfectionism [13,15], obsession [14,16], avoidance [15,17], and low self-esteem [18] have been linked to body dissatisfaction. Studies utilizing the Big Five personality model (neuroticism, extraversion, openness, agreeableness, and conscientiousness) consistently report that high neuroticism and low extraversion are associated with negative body image [19,20].

Recent research highlights that difficulties in impulse control, particularly in managing anger, mediated the impact of this discrepancy on body dissatisfaction [21]. Although studies have established a link between body image and aggressive behavior in adolescents [22,23], further investigation is needed to understand if anger acts as a psychological factor influencing body dissatisfaction in adults.

Individuals dissatisfied with their bodies tend to engage in continuous comparisons of their own and others’ appearances, sustaining dissatisfaction by perceiving others as having better physical features. This process of upward comparison leads to negative affect and guilt [24]. Coping styles, strategies for regulating emotions and managing negative situations [25], are determined by personality traits, influencing the choice of coping strategies [26] and play a crucial role in determining responses to upward comparison. Coping styles are classified into adaptive and maladaptive categories [27]. Adaptive coping styles involve actively overcoming negative situations, seeking help [28], and are associated with high conscientiousness, optimism and agreeableness [26,29,30]. In contrast, maladaptive coping styles involve avoiding problem-solving, pouring excessive negative emotions, self-blaming [28,31], and are linked to high neuroticism [26,29,30]. Moreover, maladaptive coping styles are associated with body dissatisfaction and maladaptive eating attitudes and behaviors, emphasizing the importance of adaptive coping in dealing with stress [31-33].

Studies on depression and personality traits indicate that maladaptive personality traits impact the onset of depressive symptoms [34], have negative outcome [35], and are related to treatment responsiveness [36]. Likewise, evaluating personality traits related to body dissatisfaction can aid in formulating treatment plans and predicting outcomes for individuals with body dissatisfaction.

In this study, we aimed to investigate whether there exist personality traits, including personality measures, anger expression and coping style, related to body dissatisfaction among young adults in Korea. We will categorize participants into three personality types based on their personality profiles and attempt to comprehend the correlation between personality types and the level of body dissatisfaction specific to each personality type.

METHODS

RESULTS

Demographic and personality characteristics of the participants

The demographic and personality characteristics of the 345 participants are described in Table 1. There were 128 male participants (37.1%) and 217 female participants (62.9%), with a mean age of 24.47 years (SD=4.84). The average age of male participants was 24.99 years (SD=2.92) and that of female participants was 24.16 years (SD=5.67). The average BMI was 22.33 kg/m² (SD=3.92) overall, 24.22 kg/m² for males (SD=3.93) and 21.18 kg/m² for females (SD=3.45). The overall BDDE-SR score for all participants was 27.76 (SD=20.64). There was no significant correlation between body dissatisfaction and age (r=-0.086, p=0.114), and between body dissatisfaction and BMI (r=0.056, p=0.302). When comparing body dissatisfaction between genders using a t-test, females (30.80±21.87) showed a higher level of dissatisfaction compared to males (22.59±17.24; t=-3.86, p<0.001). Furthermore, in females, there was an increase in body dissatisfaction with an increase in BMI (r=0.151, p=0.029), whereas in males, there was no significant correlation between BMI and body dissatisfaction (r=0.134, p=0.132). Stimulus seeking of ANT and AC of STAXI were higher in males than females, while emotionality of HEXACO, identity problem of BOR, wishful thinking and emotion focused coping of WCCL, TA and AI of STAXI were higher in females than males.

Table 1.

Demographic and personality characteristics of the participants

Correlations of each personality measures with BDDE-SR score and regression for BDDE-SR

The correlation between subscales of personality measures and BDDE-SR is presented in Table 2. BDDE-SR showed positive correlations with HEXACO’s emotionality (r=0.232, p<0.001), PAR of PAI (r=0.275, 0.299, 0.328, p<0.001, <0.001, <0.001, respectively), BOR of PAI (r=0.393, 0.430, 0.375, 0.269, p<0.001, <0.001, <0.001, <0.001, respectively), and ANT of PAI (r=0.129, 0.264, 0.151, p<0.001, 0.016, 0.005, respectively), WCCL’s emotion focused coping (r=0.157, p=0.004), and STAXI’s SA, TA, AO, and AI (r=0.173, 0.141, 0.121, 0.367, p=0.001, 0.009, 0.024, <0.001, respectively). Additionally, there were negative correlations with WCCL’s problem-focused coping (r=-0.125, p=0.020) and HEXACO’s extraversion and agreeableness (r=-0.264, -0.122, p<0.001, 0.024, respectively). Pearson’s correlation coefficients between all personality measures were calculated and summarized in Figure 1.

Table 2.

Descriptive statistics for each personality measures and correlations between each measure and mean BDDE-SR score

Figure 1.

Correlation matrix between personality measures. The figure was generated based on Pearson’s correlation using the Pandas python package. PAI, Personality Assessment Inventory; PAR, paranoia; BOR, borderline features; ANT, antisocial features; WCCL, the Ways of Coping Checklist; STAXI, State-Trait Anger Expression Inventory; SD, standard deviation.

Following the correlation test, we extracted variables that showed significant correlations and conducted a regression analysis to identify predictors for body dissatisfaction. Significant contributors were found in the BOR-I subscale of PAI (β=0.265, t=4.644, p<0.001), AI subscale of STAXI (β=0.203, t=3.799, p<0.001), and PAR-R subscale of PAI (β=0.168, t=3.240, p<0.01). To assess validity of this model, adjusted R2 was calculated (Table 3).

Table 3.

Multiple linear regression analysis for predicting body dissatisfaction

Three distinctive personality types based on personality measures and comparison of BDDE-SR score between the clusters

The participants were divided into three clusters based on personality traits using K-Means cluster analysis, and one-way ANOVA with Bonferroni correction was applied to examine significant differences among the clusters in terms of the means and variances of personality measures. The three clusters consisted of 88 participants in cluster 1, 154 participants in cluster 2, and 103 participants in cluster 3. The BDDE-SR mean score in cluster 2 (20.44±16.86) was significantly lower than that in cluster 1 (30.94±21.26) and cluster 3 (35.98±21.60) (Figure 2 and Supplementary Table 1). Across the three clusters, significant differences were observed in nine variables from subscales of personality measures, including HEXACO’s conscientiousness (F=37.343, p<0.001), persecution (F=27.624, p<0.001) in PAI’s PAR, affective instability (F=56.669, p<0.001), identity problems (F=46.518, p<0.001), and negative relationships (F=49.853, p<0.001) in PAI’s BOR, wishful thinking (F=106.790, p<0.001) for coping in WCCL, and TA (F=9.625, p<0.001), AO (F=20.335, p<0.001), and AI (F=76.428, p<0.001) in STAXI.

Figure 2.

(A) Group-wise comparison (cluster 1, cluster 2, and cluster 3) for mean BDDE-SR score, (B) subscales of HEXACO, (C) components of all PAR, BOR, and ANT subscales of PAI, (D) subscales of WCCL, and (E) 5 factors of STAXI. *p<0.05; **p<0.01; ***p<0.001. All error bars indicate 95% CI. BDDE-SR, Body Dysmorphic Disorder Examination Self-Report; PAR, paranoia; PAR-H, PAR-hypervigilance; PAR-P, PAR-persecution; PAR-R, PAR-resentment; BOR, borderline features; BOR-A, affective instability; BOR-I, identity problems; BORN, BOR-negative relationships; BOR-S, BOR-self-harm; ANT, antisocial features; ANT-A, ANT-antisocial behaviors; ANT-E, ANT-egocentricity; ANT-S, ANT-stimulus-seeking; WCCL, the Ways of Coping Checklist; STAXI, State-Trait Anger Expression Inventory; CI, confidence interval.

DISCUSSION

This study explored the association between various personality traits, including anger expression and coping style, and body dissatisfaction. Additionally, it classified personality types into three clusters to investigate their relationship with body dissatisfaction.

In our study, a few personality variables differed between gender. This was consistent with previous studies about gender differences in HEXACO [50], BOR of PAI [51], WCCL [52,53], and STAXI [54]. Especially, the higher scores in female in emotionality of HEXACO and identity problem of BOR and TA of STAXI, which is also known as anger temperament, may indicate that females were more likely to report the affective symptoms [55]. Such results may be in line with the high prevalence of borderline personality disorder in female [56]. AI of STAXI was also higher in female which means they are preventing anger from being expressed, but still experiencing it internally [46]. Whereas males may tend to regulated their anger (higher score in AC of STAXI) by searching for exciting and sensational experiences (higher score in ANT-S of PAI) [45,46].

On the other hand, body dissatisfaction scores were higher in females than males, which was consistent with previous researches [57-60] indicating that women tend to have a more negative view of their appearance. Reasons for women’s greater dissatisfaction with their bodies include tendencies to scrutinize their body, experience body shame, lower body esteem [61], and the absence of the ability to self-enhance desirable features, which are more prevalent in men [62].

In females, body dissatisfaction increased with an increase in BMI, while in males, there was no correlation. This may be related to the tendency of males to underestimate their weight and desire to gain weight [63] and the tendency of females to desire weight loss [64].

The personality traits predicting the body dissatisfaction in this study were identity problems, anger inhibition, and resentment. Higher scores in the identity problems domain were associated with a tendency to feel uncertain about major life issues, lose a sense of purpose, and exhibit tendencies toward emptiness, boredom, and dissatisfaction [45]. Higher scores in the AI domain were linked to internalizing anger without expressing it and turning it inward [46]. Additionally, higher resentment scores were associated with feeling insulted or slighted and harboring resentment in response [45]. Therefore, it can be speculated that individuals who experience uncertainty in life, internalize anger, and tend to attribute their unhappiness to others are more likely to perceive dissatisfaction with their bodies.

Furthermore, participants were categorized into three groups based on their personality profiles, and significant differences were observed in more than two groups for all personality traits. Specifically, conscientiousness, persecutory ideation, emotional instability, identity problems, negative interpersonal relationships, wishful thinking, TA, anger expression, and AC all showed significant differences among the groups. Notably, cluster 1 exhibited generally introverted and not conscientious traits with the lowest scores in coping with stress and controlling anger tendencies. Cluster 2 displayed socially positive traits such as honesty-humility, extraversion, agreeableness, and conscientiousness, while also presenting lower socially aversive characteristics which include suspicion, persecutory ideation, distrust, resentment, emotional and AC difficulties, and engaging in ambivalent interpersonal relationships. In contrast, cluster 3 was characterized by emotional, openness, high anger intensity and frequency, a tendency to express anger both internally and externally, and passive coping with stress. Additionally, cluster 3 scored highest on characteristics associated with aversive social behavior.

Classifying characteristics intuitively for each cluster using terms adapted from Galen’s temperamental categories [65], named after bodily humors, could be considered: cluster 1 represents a “phlegmatic and melancholic” personality, cluster 2 a “sanguine” personality, and cluster 3 a “choleric” personality.

Concerning body dissatisfaction across clusters, significant differences were found only between cluster 2 and the others, suggesting that individuals with a sanguine personality, characterized by extroversion, conscientiousness, and positive interpersonal relationships, tend to perceive their bodies less negatively. Notably, many individuals with the same BDDE-SR score were classified into different clusters. This indicates that individuals that we previously considered identical, at least superficially on a quantitative scale, have substantially different characteristics that can be grouped into subpopulations. With further research, such subpopulations may show different disease progression and treatment response, leading to a change in the way we approach BDD patients in the future. For example, patients in certain clusters may have a tendency for better therapeutic alliance formation, trying less to hide their problems, and better response to supportive psychotherapy and psychoeducation. While patients in other clusters may require more specific therapy such as emotional regulation therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, or interpersonal therapy.

This study has several limitations. First, it is a cross-sectional study, and therefore, the temporal relationship between personality types and body dissatisfaction cannot be ascertained. To address this limitation, longitudinal research is needed to examine the association between baseline and follow-up observations of personality and body dissatisfaction, allowing for a better understanding of the impact of personality on body dissatisfaction. Second, although the measures used in this study have been widely validated for reliability and validity, being self-report surveys, responses may vary based on the participants’ state. Third, the study did not assess psychiatric symptoms such as depressive or anxiety symptoms, and it is plausible that these symptoms could influence survey responses, self-evaluation, stress coping mechanisms, and other factors [66-68].

Despite the limitations above, the analysis results aligned with previous findings from other countries, demonstrating that body dissatisfaction is more pronounced in females and that there is a positive association between BMI and body dissatisfaction in females. Additionally, through cluster analysis, distinct personality trait groups showing significant differences in body dissatisfaction were intuitively classified. Notably, even with similar BDDE-SR scores, there were cases where personality traits differed. This highlights the importance of considering individual personality traits when managing body dissatisfaction, suggesting the need for diverse strategies based on personality traits, which may lead to different outcomes and prognoses.

In conclusion, our study analyzed the relationship between body dissatisfaction and personality traits in the Korean young adult population and found a significant correlation between specific personality traits and body dissatisfaction. There were significant differences in the level of body dissatisfaction among distinct personality clusters. This suggests that individuals dissatisfied with their bodies may exhibit varied patterns and outcomes based on their personality types.

Subsequent research should focus on investigating if the personality clusters identified in this study generalizes in the patient group. Generalization would require replication across various institutions or regions and the inclusion of patient groups. Considering the potential variations in the progression and management outcomes of body dissatisfaction based on personality types, it is imperative to incorporate personality traits into treatment planning for more effective interventions.

Supplementary Materials

Article information Continued