Answered and Unanswered Questions About Adolescent Girls' Dieting Behaviors

Mimi Nichter's (2000) book (see record 2000-03366-000) answers many questions that mental health professionals and parents alike have been asking about the eating and dieting behaviors of adolescent girls. Nichter calls attention to the "normal" processes of eating and dieting among adolescent girls--an area that is commonly neglected in psychology and psychiatry in the pursuit of understanding the problematic behaviors that have been observed in this population. The book recounts a three-year longitudinal study consisting of interviews gathered from adolescent girls attending urban high schools in Tuscon, Arizona. Insights are offered into the macro- and the microcultural contributions to girls' eating and dieting behaviors in a solid and substantial way. Unfortunately, the book does not help us understand the protective factors that prevent the development of eating disorders in the majority of American girls, given the pervasiveness of the cultural pressures to be thin that are described by the girls interviewed in this book. Also, although Nichter is careful to consider the ethnic differences between Caucasians and African Americans, the present study does not sufficiently address the manner or the extent to which these eating and dieting behaviors would be seen in other ethnic groups. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)