Young Men's Body Image Satisfaction and Sexuality: A Comparative Study.

Young Men's Body Image Satisfaction and Sexuality: A Comparative Study, Patricia M. Pascoal, Hospital Julio de Matos, Portugal; Nuno Monteiro Pereira, Sociedade Portuguesa de Andrologia, Portugal

Through descriptive analyses, we studied young Portuguese men's body image and looked for differences in their sexuality in terms of onset of sexual experience, sexual orientation, self-perception of sexual disorders, number of sexual partners, and masturbation, with satisfaction with body image as an independent variable. We compared 366 young men satisfied with their body image with 30 young men who were unsatisfied. The study was observational, descriptive, and transversal. The study was developed using a General Assessment Questionnaire, The Body Image Anxiety Scale, Body Mass Index, Satisfaction With Life Scale, The Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, The General Health Questionnaire-12, and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. Upon qualitative analysis, we found significant differences between the two groups. The young men satisfied with their body image had lower BMI, had studied less, perceived their education as more liberal, started to masturbate earlier, started to have sexual intercourse earlier, were less doubtful about their sexual preference, were happier with life, had better self-esteem, are were less anxious and depressed.