Body image satisfaction is often linked to psychological well-being, especially among women, yet recent work suggests smaller and demographically contingent gender differ-ences. We tested whether associations between body image satisfaction and self-esteem/depression vary by gender and subjective socioeconomic status (SSS). Adult men and women (N = 543) reported body image satisfaction, self-esteem, depression, and SSS. Body image satisfaction correlated positively with self-esteem and negatively with depression. Notably, three-way interactions (Body Image Satisfaction × Gender × SSS) were significant, indicating moderation: among women, higher SSS strengthened the positive association with self-esteem and the negative association with depression; among men, higher SSS attenuated these links. These findings indicate that connections between body image satisfaction and well-being depend jointly on gender and SSS, refining theory on when-and for whom-body image relates to well-being.
This study aimed to examine the dual mediating effects of rejection sensitivity and anger rumination in the relationship between childhood trauma and binge eating behavior among female college students. A total of 422 female college students enrolled in universities located in both metropolitan and non-metropolitan areas participated in an online survey. The collected data were analyzed using SPSS 26.0 and PROCESS Macro 4.2. The main findings were as follows. First, rejection sensitivity partially mediated the relationship between childhood trauma and binge eating behavior. Second, anger rumination also partially mediated this relationship. Third, rejection sensitivity and anger rumination sequentially mediated the relationship between childhood trauma and binge eating behavior, indicating a significant dual mediation effect. Based on these findings, the study provides a more detailed understanding of the environmental and psychological pathways that lead to binge eating behavior in female college students and discusses practical implications for counseling interventions designed to address such maladaptive eating behaviors.
Social networking services (SNS) addiction and the SNS use motives have been known to differ by gender. However, no previous study has comprehensively examined the relationships among gender, SNS use motives, and SNS addiction in Korean adolescents. This study investigated gender differences in SNS addiction tendencies and SNS use motives among 277 adolescents aged 13 to 18, and further analyzed which SNS use motives predicted SNS addiction tendency in girls and boys. Participants completed the SNS Addiction Proneness scale (SNSAP) and the SNS Use Motives Scale (SUMS). It was found that girls exhibited significantly higher SNS addiction tendencies than boys, and also scored significantly higher in social motive and conformity motive. Additionally, The conformity motive significantly predicted SNS addiction tendencies in boys, while the coping motive significantly explained addiction tendencies in girls. These findings suggest that both SNS addiction and SNS use motives may differ by gender among Korean adolescents, indicating the need for gender-specific intervention to prevent and treat SNS addiction.
In contemporary society, middle-aged women tend to experience limited leisure time and shrinking social networks as they simultaneously perform multiple roles, including childrearing, parental caregiving, household labor, and paid work. These constraints on leisure and reductions in social relationships are likely to lead to declines in psychological well-being and physical health. Accordingly, this study examined the effects of supportive social relationships on psychological well-being and physical health among middle-aged women, focusing on the mediating roles of social and personal leisure activities. The results indicated that supportive social relationships had direct positive effects on both psychological well-being and physical health and were significantly and positively associated with both social and personal leisure. Furthermore, the indirect effects of supportive social relationships on psychological well-being through leisure were significant for both social and personal leisure, whereas for physical health, only social leisure showed a significant mediating effect. This study contributes to the literature by identifying the structural pathways through which supportive social relationships influence well-being and health via leisure activities. In addition, the findings highlight the importance of leisure participation grounded in social relationships for improving the quality of life of middle-aged women and suggest practical implications, including the development of community-based leisure networks, support strategies to alleviate caregiving burdens, and active leisure programs that integrate opportunities for social interaction.
South Korea’s ultra-low fertility rate has continued to worsen and is widely recognized as a serious social issue. Within a structural context in which childbirth and childcare threaten women’s career continuity, decisions about having children are closely intertwined with women’s perceptions of their work environments and career opportunities. Drawing on the Work-Home Resources model, this study examined how workplace gender discrimination, a contextual constraint in the work domain, transfers to fertility intentions in the family domain. In particular, this study investigated whether work volition, as an individual’s psychological resource, mediates this relationship. An online survey was conducted with 600 married working women without children in South Korea. Results showed that greater experience of workplace gender discrimination reduced work volition, and lower work volition in turn decreased fertility intentions. Workplace gender discrimination indirectly influenced fertility intentions through work volition, whereas its direct effect on fertility intentions was nonsignificant. These findings suggest that fertility intentions are more closely linked to weakened perceptions of career choice resulting from discrimination than to the experience of discrimination itself. Overall, this study demonstrates that structural barriers rooted in the gender-discriminatory work environment can undermine perceptions of career choice and, in turn, constrain women’s fertility intentions. The findings highlight the need for psychological interventions to strengthen work volition alongside efforts to promote gender-equitable workplaces.
This study was conducted using a phenomenological methodology to explore the lived experiences and limitations of childcare as perceived by working mothers and to gain a deeper understanding of their meanings. Data were collected through in-depth interviews with ten working mothers who were simultaneously managing both work and childcare. Each participant participated in a 60-minute, one-on-one interview. Data were collected through in-depth interviews and analyzed following Giorgi’s four-step method. As a result, 17 significant statements, eight revealed themes, and four essential themes were derived. The findings indicated that, first, balancing work and parenting is experienced as a complex process in which time, roles, and emotions overlap, rather than merely fulfilling multiple roles. Second, participants recognized situational, social, and institutional limitations that are difficult to overcome through individual effort alone. Third, they emphasized the need for external support, family-friendly organizational cultures, changes in social perception, and policy improvements to overcome these limitations. Fourth, managing work and parenting was perceived as a meaningful experience that sustains personal identity, promotes individual growth, and facilitates the discovery of new values. This study confirms that the parenting experiences of working mothers are not solely matters of personal choice or capability but are influenced by a complex interplay of social, institutional, and organizational factors. The findings suggest that social discourse and institutional and policy improvements are necessary to shift the perception of parenting from an individual burden to a shared social responsibility.
