Exploring the mediating and moderating roles of body-related concerns and social interactions on the association between early puberty and psychological distress in young adult women

Objective To explore the mechanisms through which early puberty is associated with psychological distress in women aged 18-25. This cross-sectional study aims to investigate whether body-related concerns and social interactions moderate or mediate this association. Methods Participants were compared on measures evaluating psychological distress, body image dysphoria, bulimic symptomatology and negative intimacy with best friend according to three pubertal timing groups: (1) "very early" puberty (menarche at 9 years old or less), (2) "early" puberty (menarche at 10 years old), and (3) "on-time" puberty (menarche between 11 and 13 years old). Forward stepwise multiple regressions and multiple mediation analysis were successively performed to see whether body-related concerns and peer interactions mediate or moderate the relationship between premature puberty and psychological distress. Results Controlling for age and ethnicity, results indicated (1) that women who began puberty "very early" had significantly higher levels of psychological distress than their "on-time" counterparts; (2) the association found between very early puberty and psychological distress was mediated by body image dysphoria and negative intimacy with best friend and was moderated by bulimic symptomatology. No mediational effect was found in women whose puberty was "early". Conclusion These findings highlight the importance of using more than one group of early pubertal timing and the role of body and intimacy concerns in the explanation of psychological distress in women. Intervention strategies addressing the increased risk of psychological distress in women who begin puberty very early should target their body image and ability to form intimate friendships.