Weight bias and identity characteristics among students at a public university in Southern Brazil

Araujo, Jessica Rasquim; Leite, Maurício Soares; Bastos, João Luiz

doi:10.1590/1678-9865202437e230139

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ORIGINAL | Collective Health • Rev Nutr 37 • 2024 • https://doi.org/10.1590/1678-9865202437e230139 copy

Weight bias and identity characteristics among students at a public university in Southern Brazil

Discriminação relacionada ao peso e suas vinculações com características identitárias entre estudantes de uma universidade pública no sul do Brasil

Authorship SCIMAGO INSTITUTIONS RANKINGS

ABSTRACT

Objective

Despite the consequences of weight discrimination for health inequities, its relationship with identity characteristics remains poorly understood. We investigated whether and to what extent discrimination attributed to body weight is linked to sociodemographic and identity factors.

Methods

This cross-sectional study is based on a representative sample of undergraduate students from the Federal University of Santa Catarina. Information on perceived discrimination was collected using the brief version of the Explicit Discrimination Scale. Socioeconomic and demographic data were also collected.

Results:

The results showed that 22.8% of the sample reported experiencing discrimination for being “fat or thin” throughout their lives. Perceived weight discrimination was higher among respondents whose household heads had completed up to high school education, and among those who were overweight and rated their health as “poor.”

Conclusion

Perceived weight discrimination was associated with significant factors linked to the stigmatization and pathologization of body weight. These findings should be considered in more inclusive approaches aimed at counteracting the embodiment of social inequalities.

Keywords
Health inequality monitoring; Intersectional framework; Weight prejudice; Weight bias; Weight stigma

Item	Situation
1	Have you ever been mistaken for an employee at an establishment, when in fact, you were a customer? For example, confused with a salesperson, clerk or waiter?
2	When visiting stores, restaurants or cafeterias, have you ever been treated in an inferior manner compared to other customers?
3	When visiting public offices, such as the federal revenue, notary offices, traffic departments, water, electricity, sewage companies or others, have you ever been treated in an inferior manner compared to other people attended there?
4	Have you ever been treated as if you were unintelligent or incapable of carrying out any curricular activity at school or university? Consider current (university) and past (school) situations in which you were treated this way by teachers or colleagues, even though you thought you had all the conditions to carry out the activities.
5	When trying to hook up or date someone, have you ever been treated with contempt by the other person, without giving reasons for it? Just consider situations in which you were treated worse compared to others who also tried to hook up or date this person or another person.
6	Have you ever been treated in an inferior manner by any of your parents, uncles, cousins or grandparents compared to other family members?
7	Have you ever been called names, heard words you didn’t like, or derogatory terms? Consider that this could have happened on streets, buses, shopping malls, banks, stores, parties, schools, workplaces or other public places.
8	Have you ever been excluded or left aside by a group of neighborhood friends, people in your neighborhood or in your condominium? Consider that this could have happened at neighborhood gatherings, condominium meetings, parties and other celebrations.

Variables		Final Model
Variables		Regression coefficient	95% CI	p-value
Level of education of the head of the family
	Incomplete high school or more	1.00(ref)	1.00(ref)	1.00(ref)
	Up to complete college education	1.74	1.23-2.46	0.005
Body mass index (kg/m²)
	18.5-24	1.00(ref)	1.00(ref)	1.00(ref)
	<=18.4	2.17	0.95-4.95	0.061
	>=25.0	2.43	1.47-4.01	0.002
Self-rated health
	Good	1.00(ref)	1.00(ref)	1.00(ref)
	Bad	1.98	0.13-0.24	0.003

Characteristics		Sample distribution		Analytical sample distribution		Differential treatment for being fat or thin		Classification of differential treatment as discrimination
Characteristics		n	% ^a a Estimates are corrected by sampling design and sample weights.	n	% ^a a Estimates are corrected by sampling design and sample weights.	n	% ^a a Estimates are corrected by sampling design and sample weights.	n	% ^a a Estimates are corrected by sampling design and sample weights.
Gender ^b b These variables presented missing observations:
	Man	553	55.7	408	54.5	91	22.3	63	15.4
	Woman	455	44.3	357	45.5	71	19.9	63	17.6
Age group (years) ^b b These variables presented missing observations:
	16-22	558	60.8	499	63.3	100	20	78	15.6
	23-27	240	27.1	205	27.9	50	24.4	41	20
	28-52	101	12.2	61	8.8	12	19.7	7	11.5
/race ^b b These variables presented missing observations:
	White	827	84.4	656	86	139	21.2	110	16.8
	Black	152	15.6	109	14	23	21.1	16	14.7
Level of education of the head of the household
	Up to complete secondary education	287	28.6	218	28.8	55	25.2	46	21.1
	Incomplete higher education or more	736	71.4	547	71.2	107	19.6	80	14.6
Body mass index ^b b These variables presented missing observations:
	<=18.4	66	6.4	58	7.4	16	27.6	14	24.1
	18.5-24	730	71.4	550	70	89	16.2	70	12.7
	>=25.0	227	22.2	157	22.6	57	36.3	42	26.8
Self-rated health ^b b These variables presented missing observations:
	Good	853	83.6	646	83.2	118	18.3	90	13.9
	Bad	167	16.4	119	16.8	44	37	36	30.3

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[1] Correspondence to: JR ARAUJO. E-mail: araujojr@ufmg.br.