Weight stigma toward pregnant patients: An experimental study of medical students

To investigate the presence of implicit and explicit weight bias among a sample of medical students.

Using a between-subjects experimental design, medical students (N = 100; Age_M = 25.83 ± 2.76), were randomly assigned to read a vignette about a pregnant patient with a lower body mass index (BMI; 23 kg/m²) or a higher BMI (33 kg/m²). Participants then completed questionnaires related to perceptions and liking of the patient, and explicit attitudes about people who have larger bodies (i.e., BMIs ≥ 30 kg/m²).

There were no significant differences between vignettes, suggesting that implicit bias against pregnant patients with higher versus lower BMIs was not identified. However, weight stigmatizing attitudes were associated with medical student BMI, such that medical students with higher BMIs expressed more positive attitudes for patients with BMIs ≥ 30 kg/m² than medical students with lower BMIs.

These findings indicate that implicit weight bias towards pregnant patients in medical students is low, particularly among medical students with higher weight, which may represent a shift in societal attitudes towards patients with larger bodies.