ScholarWorks@숙명여자대학교

초록

The purpose of this study was to examine whether appearance satisfaction mediates the relationship between acculturative stress and self-esteem among multicultural adolescents, and to investigate whether this process differs by gender. Using data from the 6th wave (2016) of the first cohort of the Multicultural Adolescents Panel Study (MAPS) conducted by the National Youth Policy Institute of Korea, this study analyzed responses from 1,310 multicultural adolescents. Structural equation modeling was employed to test the hypothesized relationships, and the mediating effect was verified using bootstrapping methods. In addition, multi-group analysis was conducted to examine gender differences in the structural paths. The results showed that acculturative stress had a significant negative effect on appearance satisfaction, while appearance satisfaction had a significant positive effect on self-esteem. The direct effect of acculturative stress on self-esteem was not statistically significant. However, the indirect effect of acculturative stress on self-esteem through appearance satisfaction was significant, indicating a full mediation effect. Multi-group analysis revealed no significant gender differences in the structural relationships, suggesting that the mediating role of appearance satisfaction operates similarly for both male and female adolescents. These findings imply that, regardless of gender, acculturative stress influences self-esteem among multicultural adolescents primarily through appearance satisfaction. Based on these results, policy and practical implications for promoting psychological well-being among multicultural adolescents are discussed.

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