Weight Loss, Subculture Socialization, and Affective Meanings

Using a purposive convenience sample (N = 400), I investigate how intentional weight loss and involvement in a weight lossand fitness subculture are related to the affective meanings (evaluation, potency, and activity) associated with aspects of the self (myself as I really am, myself as others see me, and my body), weight-related identities (e.g., a slender woman, an obese man), and weight and fitness related behaviors (e.g., to exercise, to eat three desserts). I operationalize subculture involvement with four dimensions: extensive (the size of social networks within the subculture), affective (the importance that significant others give to subculture related activities), duration (duration of involvement with the subculture), and frequency (frequency of involvement in subculture activities). I find that duration of weight loss maintenance is positively related to evaluation, potency, and activity associated with fitness behaviors (to exercise and to be physically active) and negatively related to the evaluation, potency, and activity associated with an overeating behavior (to eat three desserts). Subculture involvement, particularly extensiveness and frequency, is positively related to the evaluation and activity associated with slender identities and positively related to the evaluation, potency, and activity they see in themselves and their bodies and that they think others see in them. All dimensions of subculture involvement, except for affective involvement, are positively related to the evaluation, potency, and activity associated with fitness behaviors. Subculture involvement also tends to be negatively related to the evaluation, potency, and activity associated with overweight and obese identities and one overeating behavior (to eat three desserts). Weight loss success (e.g., weight loss and weight lossmaintenance) also tends to accentuate the effects of subculture involvement on behavior meanings and to weaken the effects of subculture involvement on identity and self meanings. The findings suggest that intentional weight loss and subculture socialization jointly shape the meanings individuals associate with themselves and weight- and fitness-related identities and behaviors. The findings also suggest that two features of subculture involvement – extensiveness of social networks and frequency of involvement – tend to have the strongest effect on meanings. I conclude by discussing the implications of these findings for theories and studies of socialization and subcultures.