Gender Differences in the Relationship Between Body Esteem, Depressive Symptoms, and Academic Performance Among Adolescents (2023)

Undergraduate: Yifei Pei

Faculty Advisor: Susan Girdler
Department: Psychology & Neuroscience

---

The study sought to understand the relationship between body esteem, depressive moods, and academic achievement among adolescents. No prior study examined the relationships between body esteem, depression, and academic achievement by gender. This study aimed to investigate whether gender differences exist in 1) the relationship between body esteem and academic performance, 2) the relationship between depressive symptoms and academic performance, and 3) the relationship between body esteem and depressive symptoms. The analyses yielded evidence that suggested the possibility of gender differences in the relationship between measures of body esteem and weighted GPA and in the relationship between measures of body esteem and depressive symptoms. A positive correlation between general body esteem and academic performance was found only in boys. Negative correlations between all measures of body esteem and depressive symptoms were only found in girls.

Link to Poster