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The impact of media on body image
The impact of media on body image
The impact of media on body image
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Introduction In the recent decades, with the improvement of the living standard, people have been paying more attention to their own physical appearance. For example, when a person faces to a mirror, he or she will think about if his or her height, weight, body shape even the hair style are beautiful in nowadays’ society. Another example is many grandparents think their obese grandchildren are healthy, but a large number of adolescents themselves think as thin as fashion models are healthy. Obviously, different people have different body image in mind. In my view, the different culture backgrounds, genders, age groups or living environments all can cause different body images. This article will talk about how does the media impact people’s body image and some previous studies in body image will be shown. Literature review Media has become the main way for people to get information no matter is the ancient story or the latest news. However, the negative impact also comes out. For example, according to a meta-analysis of 25studies from 1979-2001 shows that people’s body images felt more positive after seeing a fat media image than viewing a thin media image(Groesz,L.,&Murnen,2007). Thus, the researcher sum up that the slender image can let people feel satisfaction. As a result, mare and more social or psychological researcher want to study that how the media influences people’s thinking and use the satisfaction to describe the measure of body image. Previous study one( body image study in adolescents) The researcher Hill, G.J. who is the assistant professor of Texas Christian University had a study focus on two main objects. First, to determine media images influence the body image among the collage students. Second, to find if the media effect collage students’ body satisfaction(Hill,G.J.,2009). According to him, the abilitiesof people realise body satisfaction and health behavior,are influenced by mass media images is very important for family and consumer sciences professionals to understand. In this study, there are 184 students who comes from a private university were attended this survey. The average age of student is 21. Both of the male (42%) and female (58%) students were given two sections which were the powerpoint presentation about the weighu management was developed and the questionnaires after the presentation. Firstly, these 184 students were randomly assigned to control and experimental groups. The presentation gave the introduction about achievinh health weight, improving eating habits even the food guide pyramid.
Society is exposed to media everyday, and body image is included in this. Conception of body image varies from adolescents to adults, men to women, and different age groups of the same gender. The media gives off unreliable and impractical images sometimes that do not have positive affects on the public. Advertisers, parents, producers have a responsibility to portray positive information and representation to help benefit the public.
Media contributes in a way we see our body such as in an attractive or unattractive way such as Rebecca J.Donatelle in “ Enhancing your Body Image” explains. The way we assume about our physical appearance can lead to health problems and other side effects we can come across throughout our lifestyle. For instance the body image myths that the author states in the paragraph shows some effects on how our society feels today. And the changes one can make to become better to be better therefore changing our life for the better can combat in a lifetime experience.
Why is this topic of utmost importance? Undeniably, the media now has become an essential tool for everyone in this era, be it for information and social networking (Shakeel). However, it has also become a platform for people to look up to – for both the good and bad reasons. Generally, most females look to the media as an example for an “ideal” body image. If so, what are the impacts? To what extent does mass media contribute to negative perceptions of body image by females? Does the amount of time spent using the mass media contribute to females’ perception of their body image? What factors influence why some females are affected by the images of the media and some aren’t? This literatu...
If one does not fit this ideal, then they are considered unappealing. Unfortunately, there is nothing one can do to truly change their body image other than think happier thoughts, obtain plastic surgery, or go to the gym to make themselves feel and potentially look better. Popular media is making it extremely difficult for one to maintain a positive body image. They have created the perfect human image that is almost unattainable to reach. The idea of a teenager’s body image is being destroyed by the standards of magazines, television shows, and society as a whole, making it to where it will never recover again. To better understand the effect popular media has on one’s body image, viewing psychology, medicine and health sciences, and cultural and ethnic studies will give a better understanding on the
Body image is among of the top reasons for developing psychological conditions in the country based upon the bias of what is shown through the screen. Since the nineteen-nineties an alarming trend has come to pass as a result in the growing epidemic of obesity in the United States, to oppose this the exact opposite became popular to become skeletal in appearance with bones showing naturally through the skin. Becoming an accepted notion to starve in order to attain this new angelic appearance, rising above the notion of overly plentiful food by not eating until the body became undernourished. Even the naturally thin models were not skinny enough trying to appeal to this new craze. The resulting effects became depression in this pursuit of perfection, with competition becoming higher among women with finding mates, with this idealized persona becoming the image to men of what women should
Deanne Jade believes that the media does its part to keep us informed on "valuable information on health and well-being," (Jade 8). I agree however I feel that is done in such a manner that girl feel as if they must exhaust the media’s advice on fitness and health and use these methods in order to obtain the picture perfect body image that they see on TV and in magazines. A cou...
In recent years, sociologists, psychologists, and medical experts have gone to great lengths about the growing problem of body image. This literature review examines the sociological impact of media-induced body image on women, specifically women under the age of 18. Although most individuals make light of the ideal body image most will agree that today’s pop-culture is inherently hurting the youth by representing false images and unhealthy habits. The paper compares the media-induced ideal body image with significant role models of today’s youth and the surrounding historical icons of pop-culture while exploring various sociological perspectives surrounding this issue.
Dittmar, Helga. "How Do "body Perfect" Ideals in the Media Have a Negative Impact on Body Image and Behaviors? Factors and Processes Related to Self and Identity." : Sussex Research Online. N.p, 6 Feb. 2012. Web. 27 Mar. 2014.
It has been said time and time again that media heavily influences the desastisfied body image, may women and girls enconter. Previous studies have shown how over expouser to the hyper-sexualized ads and images in the media lead to a distortion of body image in women and girls. However, there is yet another factor that influences the decline of body image just as much. Peer competition has been shown to contribute to this decline as well. Peer competition is any rivarly for supermacy amongst those of the same age group or social group. A recent study shows that women’s body dissatisfaction is influenced by peer competition with other rather than depictions of women in the media. Muñoz and Ferguson, (2012) developed a study in order to further understand the influence of inter-peer pressure in body dissatisfaction.
Researchers have used various abstract foundations for examining the relationship between media and body image ( Holmstrom, 2004). Here I review the theory that has been used by researcher in the area. Bandura’s Social cognitive theory (1994) assumed that “people learn and model the behaviors of attractive others”. The supporters of this theory suggest that young women find slim models in the media attractive and try to imitate them through dieting which leads them to eating disorders.
The importance of physical appearance is emphasized and reinforced early in most girl’s development; studies have found that nearly half of females ages 6-8 have said they want to have a slimmer body image (Serdar). Body image is a complicated aspect of the self-concept that concerns an individual’s perceptions and feelings about their body and physical appearance (Serdar). Images in the media today project an unrealistic and even dangerous standard of feminine beauty that can have a powerful influence on the way women view themselves (Serdar). This ‘ideal’ body image is present in mainstream media, and mainstream media are a sources for women to turn to for women with how they should look. (Hendriks, 2002). Images in advertisements, television, and music usually portray the ideal woman as tall, white, thin, no curves, and have blonde hair. Women who are active viewers of media may develop the attitude that thinness is desirable, experience greater body dissatisfaction, and may even partake in weight loos behaviors in attempt to mirror the models and actresses they observe in the media. (Hesse-Biber, Leavy, Quinn, & Zoino, 2006). In recent years, women’s body sizes have grown larger, while societal standards of body shape have become much thinner (Serdar). Only a very small percentage of women in Western countries
The media have been criticized for portraying the thin women as “ideal” .This research plans to look at the effects of media on the body image of women. This cumulates the findings of empirical studies that observe the effects of media on body image. This study will also look at the different social comparison theories that relate media and body image. It will also investigate the different sources of media that have an impact on the body image of women. It also scopes to find out which sources have a greater consequence than the others. Furthermore it also researches about how the women could be prevented from comparing their body image from that of the models and actresses portrayed in the media.
The overwhelming idea of thinness is probably the most predominant and pressuring standard. Tiggeman, Marika writes, “This is not surprising when current societal standards for beauty inordinately emphasize the desirability of thinness, an ideal accepted by most women but impossible for many to achieve.” (1) In another study it is noted that unhealthy attitudes are the norm in term of female body image, “Widespread body dissatisfaction among women and girls, particularly with body shape and weight has been well documented in many studies, so much so that weight has been aptly described as ‘a normative discontent’”. (79) Particularly in adolescent and prepubescent girls are the effects of poor self-image jarring, as the increased level of dis...
The importance of body image and the idealisation of the ideal body have become more dominant in society today.
Vargas, L E. (2013) The Negative Effects of The Media on Body Image. Personal.psu.edu. Retrieved 30 Nov. 17 from: