Reliability assessment of the somatomorphic matrix

Objective: The appearance of muscularity is an emerging topic of research interest within the body image field. However, the most widely used measure to assess attitudes toward muscularity, the somatomorphic matrix, lacks pertinent reliability data. Method: In response to this dearth of information, the current study assessed the test-retest reliability of this measure in samples of men and women. Results: Surprisingly, the somatomorphic matrix demonstrated inadequate reliability for the majority of assessed rating protocols. Discussion: The implications of this finding on assessment of the muscularity construct are discussed. (C) 2004 by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.