WAS THE DUCHESS OF WINDSOR RIGHT - A CROSS-CULTURAL REVIEW OF THE SOCIOECOLOGY OF IDEALS OF FEMALE BODY SHAPE

Why do some cultures prefer thin women, while others value female fatness? Using the Standard Cross-Cultural Sample, we investigated predictions derived from several socioecological hypotheses related to three biological functions of human female body fat (insulation, storage of calories, and regulation of fertility). Results suggest that attitudes toward fatness in women are related cross-culturally to (1) reliability of food supply, (2) climate, (3) relative social dominance of women, (4) the value placed on women's work, and (5) the probability that the expression of adolescent sexuality will have adverse consequences on girls. These hypotheses may be useful in providing an ultimate explanation for currently observed patterns in attitudes toward female fatness, complementing the more proximate approach of the traditional social sciences.