The interaction between BMI, weight criticism, weight bias, and psychological and relational outcomes within marriage

Purpose: To examine (1) whether a wife's BMI interacts with either her husband's weight stigma or (2) her perceived weight criticisms from her husband predict husbands' and wives' psychological and relational outcomes.

Methods: The study sample consisted of 209 currently married men and women in a heterosexual relationship. Participants were drawn from an online survey platform (Qualtrics, Inc. Provo, UT) designed to approximate the US population on age, race, and region of the country. Online measures assessed husbands' weight stigma, wives' perceived weight criticisms from husband, and husbands' and wives': (1) relationship satisfaction, (2) sexual intimacy, (3) self-esteem, (4) depressive symptoms, and (5) perceptions of a desirable or ideal mate.

Results: Wives' BMI interacted with husbands' weight stigma to predict (1) mate value for husbands and wives and (2) marital satisfaction for husbands. The same pattern was noted with interaction of wives' BMI and perceptions of husbands' weight related criticisms. The interaction reflected that higher wife BMI and higher husband weight stigma or wife perceived weight-related criticism predicted lower marital satisfaction, greater depression, and lower perceptions of a desirable or an ideal mate. Lower BMI was not associated with outcomes regardless of the husbands' weight stigma or wives' perceived weight-related criticisms.

Conclusion: To understand the impact of weight stigma and weight related criticisms on perceptions of a desirable or ideal mate and marital outcomes, it is important to examine the interaction with partner's BMI.

Level of evidence: III: Evidence obtained from cohort or case-control analytic studies.