The relationship between restrained eating and body shape satisfaction in couples and singles

Thirty-nine couples, twenty-one single females and seventeen single males participated in a study of eating behavior and body image. Subjects completed eating behavior inventories and body ratings of themselves, and in the couples portion, of their partners. Both female and male subjects generally wanted to be smaller than they perceived themselves to be, with the largest discrepancy being for coupled females, and the smallest discrepancy for single males. A significant correlation was found between ratings coupled subjects made of themselves and their partners. Restrained eating was found to highly correlate with the discrepancy between one's ideal and current ratings of their body. Coupled female subjects were inaccurate in predicting how their partner would rate them. The four instruments used to measure restraint were highly inter-correlated.