This
blog has been prepared by Tendai Sithole a student at the University
of Waikato currently in her 4th year towards a LLB/BA. The objective of this blog is to set up
a topic related to the SMST102-14B (HAM) course with regards to the
connection between media and culture in our societies in the form of
a hypothesis. This blog has three sections, the first section has
findings in support of the hypothesis, the second section shows
findings against the hypothesis and lastly there is a commentary on
the research and hypothesis. Tendai decided to look at effects that
the media has on body image especially that of women and young girls.
The hypothesis is as follows:
The
media's portrayal of the “perfect image” leaves a lot of women
and young girls feeling inadequate.
Findings in
support of the argument
Pro argument:
The
media has adverse effects on how women and
young girls view their bodies.
Facebook:
The encyclopaedia of beauty.
Before
social
media networks, we mostly had images of impossibly perfect
celebrities which were shown to us through tv, billboards and
magazines, but we weren't sitting around starring at them for hours
everyday.
However
it did not stop there. The constant self-comparisons and escalating
insecurities translated into a pattern of food deprivation and
incessant exercise for some girls at college. That's
when the other, more pernicious social networks came into the
picture. Some of the girls in Coleman's sorority began frequenting
pro-eating-disorder communities online, where users encourage one
another in anorexic and bulimic behaviour. Most of these sites, open
to all, offer "thinspiration" (or "thinspo") -- photographs of emaciated celebrities and models, and before-and-after
shots of girls-next-door, meant to serve as motivation on the quest
for skin and bones...
"Social
networking sites are part of the ubiquitous media landscape that
shapes what children come to know as society's body ideal,"
observed Dina Borzekowski, professor at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg
School of Public Health, who specialises in children, media and
health. "Social media may have a stronger impact on children's
body images than traditional media. Messages and images are more
targeted; if the message comes from a 'friend,' it is perceived as
more credible and meaningful."
...findings
appear to be largely conflicting. Some claim that Facebook boosts
self-esteem, while others report the opposite, including a condition
known as "Facebook depression."...one
compelling 2011 study from the University of Haifa found that the
more time adolescent girls spent on Facebook, the more likely they
were to develop a negative body image and eating disorders.
A
great deal of eating disorder messages are now being delivered
through Twitter, texts and Tumblr.
Borzekowsk
held that it is important to note that "there are people who are
much more susceptible to media's influence than others. Messages and
images like thinspiration pictures may inspire some but repulse
others."
In
her experience, children who are most at risk are those with more
exposure to media messages, and less exposure to rational, clear
messages from supportive adults and community leaders.
The
role of the media in body image concerns among women: A meta analysis
of experimental and correlation studies.
Approximately
50% of girls and undergraduate women report being dissatisfied with
their bodies. These perceptions develop
relatively early, emerging among children as young as age 7 years,
and appear to exist across diverse levels of body size and race
(Dohnt & Tiggemann, 2006a; Grabe & Hyde, 2006).
Why
is it that so many girls and young women are dissatisfied with their
bodies, regardless of the size? Among the many forces believed to
play a role (in addition to parental messages and peer-related
teasing) is the increasingly thin ideal dominating the media. Across
movies, magazines, and television programs, thin- ness is
consistently emphasised and rewarded for women (e.g., Fouts &
Burggraf, 1999), and thin television characters are over- represented
while overweight characters are underrepresented.
Thus,
media aimed at girls, adolescents, and young women are replete with
extremely thin models that portray an ideal that is unattainable to
most. According to communications theories, repeated exposure to
media content leads viewers to begin to accept media portrayals as
representations of reality...because media presentations of women’s
bodies are so skewed, showcasing an ideal that is out of reach to
most, adopting this reality may lead to decreased satisfaction with
one’s own body and to behaviours aimed at meeting this ideal,
behaviours such as dieting, bingeing and purging, and skipping meals.
A
growing body of experimental research indicates that exposure to
thin-ideal models leads to increased body dissatisfaction and eating
disorder symptomatology. Correlational studies illustrate that
regular exposure to thin-ideal media is frequently associated with
comparatively higher levels of negative body image outcomes.
…findings
suggest that, overall, thin-ideal media exposure is related to higher
levels of body dissatisfaction, stronger internalisation of the thin
ideal, and more frequent bulimic and anorexic attitudes and behaviours. Interestingly, for the internalisation outcome variable,
we found that effects were stronger in the 2000s compared with in the
1990s.
Taken
together, the findings from these analyses suggest that media
exposure is linked to women’s generalised dissatisfaction with
their bodies, increased investment in appearance, and in- creased
endorsement of disordered eating behaviours. These effects appear
robust: They are present across multiple outcomes and are
demonstrated in both the experimental and correlational literatures.
The
findings from this study can inform prevention and intervention
efforts particularly in the areas of education and advertising. With
respect to education, media literacy can be used to teach girls and
women to become more active, critical consumers of appearance-related
media to prevent the development of body dissatisfaction and
disturbed eating behaviours.
Perhaps
of greater benefit would be to reduce the emphasis on an
unrealistically thin ideal that is perpetuated through the
objectification of women’s bodies in the media. Interestingly,
Dittmar and Howard (2004) found that women reported less body-focused
anxiety after exposure to attractive, average-size models than after
exposure to no models; the lowered anxiety, in a sense, demonstrates
a relief effect due to exposure to “average” models.
More
extensive study of the role of thin-ideal media exposure in these
important health behaviours is needed.
Media
Smarts: Body image
Body
image: introduction.
The
belief that “thin is beautiful” is pervasive in our culture.
At
a time where young people are focused on developing their individual
identities, they are also highly susceptible to both social pressure
and media images which can have a profound effect on how they see
their bodies. Health
professionals also note that boys, like girls, are not immune to
media images that promote narrow standards of attractiveness.
In
a world where pervasive media images fuel unrealistic expectations
about how we should look – and dissatisfaction if we fail to make
the grade – it is vitally important that both girls and boys be
taught the media literacy skills they need to critically engage with
media representations of male and female bodies.
Body
image: Girls.
Why
are these impossible standards of beauty being imposed on girls, the
majority of whom look nothing like the models that are being
presented to them? The causes, some analysts say, are economic: by
presenting a physical ideal that is difficult to achieve and maintain
the cosmetic and diet industries are assured continual growth and
profits. (It’s estimated that the diet industry alone brings in $60
billion (U.S.)
Marketers
know that girls and women who are insecure about their bodies are
more likely to buy beauty products, new clothes, and diet aids, and a
whole media industry has developed around fuelling body
dissatisfaction.
The
effects of exposure to these images go beyond influencing girls to
buy diet and beauty products. Research links exposure to images of
thin, young, air-brushed female bodies to depression, loss of
self-esteem and unhealthy eating habits in girls and young women:
Media
activist Jean Kilbourne concludes that, “Women are sold to the diet
industry by the magazines we read and the television programs we
watch, almost all of which make us feel anxious about our weight.”
Kilbourne
argues that the overwhelming presence of media images of painfully
thin women means that real girls’ bodies have become invisible in
the mass media. The real tragedy, Kilbourne concludes, is that many
girls internalize these stereotypes, and judge themselves by the
beauty industry’s standards. This focus on beauty and desirability
“effectively destroys any awareness and action that might help to
change that climate.”
Given
the serious potential consequences, it is essential that girls and
young women develop a critical understanding of the constructed
nature of media representations of women’s bodies and the reasons
why these images are perpetuated.
Body
image: Film and tv.
Despite
the popularity of the Internet, movies and TV still dominate young
people’s media use (though they are increasingly watching both
online). Given this widespread appeal, these media may have an
indirect effect by influencing how groups or cultures view body
image.
One
reason for this may be the very small number of women of average or
above-average weight found onTV. Researcher Gregory Fouts has found
that underweight women are over-represented on TV sitcoms; only 5 per
cent of women on sitcoms are overweight. When women of above average
weight do appear, they tend to draw negative comments from other
characters about their looks.
These
comments are almost always followed by “canned” laughter,
indicating that the audience is expected to agree that these
characters are appropriate butts of humour. On Friends,
for example, the character of Monica is shown as being overweight in
flashbacks – portrayed by the same actress, wearing a “fat suit”
– in which her weight is consistently played for laughs.
A
study of TV comedies aimed specifically at children found a number of
average and above-average weight characters that more accurately
reflected reality, but some troubling findings as well...one in four
overweight characters was portrayed as being unpopular or as having
no friends.
Fortunately,
there are people working for change, both within and outside the TV
and film industries. Most notable is the Geena
Davis Institute on Gender and Media which
publishes research and resources for parents and teachers aimed at
improving how women are portrayed in movies and TV. Their bi-annual
Symposium on Gender and Media brings together activists, academics
and entertainment industry figures to help improve gender equality in
media.
Findings
Against the argument
Con
argument:
The media is not solely to be blamed for the high rates of body
dissatisfaction amongst women and young girls.
Predictors
of body dissatisfaction among adolescent females
<counselingoutfitters.com/vistas/vistas09/Hall.doc>
Body
dissatisfaction can be defined as the subjective negative evaluation
of one’s figure or body parts. It is estimated that as many as 10
million women and 1 million men suffer from anorexia nervosa, another
25 million are estimated to be affected by bulimia nervosa (Shisslak,
Crago, & Estes, 1995, as cited in Park, 2005).
Research
has supported the notion that fewer body image worries can be
predicted by acceptance by friends and perceived social support. One
study explored whether poorer friendships can predict weight concerns
and dietary restraint in adolescent girls. The study found that the
friendship variables which included
acceptance by friends, perceived social support, friendship intimacy,
and perceived impact of thinness on female friendships, contributed
significantly to the prediction of body image concern, body
dissatisfaction, and restrained eating (Gerner & Wilson, 2005).
Theoretical
and empirical literature suggests that there is a relationship
between body dissatisfaction and aspects of friendship quality,
especially negative aspects of friendship relationships. Research
also suggests that body dissatisfaction is associated with the belief
that thinness is important to positive peer relationships.
Perceived
peer influence among the friendship groups correlated significantly
with dieting, extreme weight loss behaviours, and binge eating.
Further analyses revealed that perceived peer influences in
weight-related attitudes and behaviours were predictive of individual
girls’ level of body image concern. Findings such as this reveal
the importance of peers in body image and eating problems for females
during early adolescence (Hutchinson & Rapee, 2007).
Internalisation
of the current thin ideal set for females and the belief that
achieving thinness will result in many different social benefits,
such as acceptance and academic success, is also thought to promote
body dissatisfaction. One study
found that high levels of thin-ideal internalisation predicted
increases in body dissatisfaction.
Research
has implied that social support may play an important role in
promoting body image and eating disturbances. Deficits in social
support may increase body dissatisfaction because a deficit in
unconditional support from family and friends is thought to result in
negative feelings about one’s physical appearance. It is believed
that when an adolescent female feels that she is accepted and
appreciated in her own immediate social environment, it will help her
feel more positively about herself and her body.
Concurrent
and Prospective Analyses of Peer, Television
and Social Media Influences on Body Dissatisfaction, Eating Disorder Symptoms and Life Satisfaction in Adolescent Girls.
and Social Media Influences on Body Dissatisfaction, Eating Disorder Symptoms and Life Satisfaction in Adolescent Girls.
Some
believe that media influences on body dissatisfaction may extend to
eating disorder symptoms, possibly explaining increases in eating
disorders such as bulimia nervosa across the twentieth century in
Western nations (e.g., Becker et al. 2002).
Other scholars contend that links between media and body
dissatisfaction are not consistent, may be explained by other
variables such as personality traits or family environment (e.g.,
Holmstrom 2004), or may apply only to
some girls but not others (e.g.,
Roberts and Good 2010).
It
may be that the media merely reflects the culture’s changing
attitudes toward beauty rather than causing those changes. Further,
some evidence suggests that the prevalence of eating disorders may
have declined beginning in the final years of the twentieth century,
despite no decline in media thin ideals.
Both
males and females tend to view the pursuit of beauty as important for
females (Markey and Markey 2012). This
primary importance attributed to female beauty can contribute to
relatively higher body dissatisfaction levels among women (Ferguson
et al. 2011).
The
most recent meta-analysis of media effects on body dissatisfaction
and eating disorders (Ferguson, in press) estimated that a little
over 200 studies examined media effects on body dissatisfaction and
eating disorder symptoms. Ferguson concluded that the evidence was
largely inconsistent, with small overall links between media ideals
and body dissatisfaction in women already predisposed to body
dissatisfaction.
Social
media may provide one outlet for the promulgation of the thin-ideal
through advertisements and conversations among peers. To date, few
studies have examined the potential impact of social media and body
dissatisfaction on eating disorder symptoms in teenage girls.
Gondoli
et al. (2011) found that peer pressure
for thinness was a main predictor of body dissatisfaction among
adolescent girls, particularly in proximity with potential
opposite-sex mates. Helfert and Warschburger (2011)
similarly found that both peer and parental pressure for thinness
predicted body dissatisfaction in adolescent girls. Ferguson et al.
(2011a, b)
found that peer competition, but not television effects, predicted
body dissatisfaction in adolescent girls. Thus, it is possible that
preventative attention may be better spent focusing on peer issues
rather than media issues.
...body
dissatisfaction is
a
direct result of inter female competition for mates. Such competition
is expected to be higher in cultures in which females have more free
choice in selecting mates, where females remain in the dating pool
longer by marrying later, where abundant food focuses on thinness as
a signal of health, etc., thus explaining some of the observed
cultural differences in thin ideals and body dissatisfaction. The
Catalyst Model suggests that awareness to peer competition and
resultant body dissatisfaction is a rational if distressing reaction
to mate selection pressures.
In addition to genetic and evolutionary factors, the Catalyst Model suggests that peer influences are likely to have a greater influence on body dissatisfaction than media images. This is because viewers of media are able to distinguish between fictional media and real-life competition. Put another way, women understand they are competing for sexual partners with their peers, not women on television.
Depleting body image: The effects of female magazine models on the self esteem and body image of college age women.
<http://www.ssc.wisc.edu/~jpiliavi/357/body-image.htm>
Our
study, focused on women who attend the University of
Wisconsin-Madison that are between the ages of eighteen and
twenty-four. We wanted to identify the specific effects that the
magazine portrayal of the “perfect” body has on college-age
women’s body image and self-esteem. We hypothesised that this
portrayal contributes to women having negative body images and
self-esteem due to the reinforcement of body shapes and sizes in
magazines that are unrealistic for most women to attain.
Our
study shows a clear correlation between the frequency of negative
thoughts and how often the respondent felt that she would be more
attractive if she looked more like a female model. The more often the
respondent had negative thoughts about her body, the more often she
felt like she would be more attractive if she looked more like a
model. The same correlation was true for the frequency of negative
thoughts and the frequency of exercising in order to look more like
models. The same correlation was also true for the frequency of
negative thoughts and the frequency of magazines causing negative
feelings about one’s body. These correlations show that the effect
of magazines on the respondents was dependent upon body image in
general.
Our
observational study suggests that college-age women feel that the
body shape of female models in magazines is an unnatural, and even
unhealthy shape... Our survey used in method one found that most
college-age women never feel as if magazine models have the ideal
body shape, but we also found that despite this, many college-age
women still strive to attain this unrealistic ideal.
Our
interviews suggest that female models in magazines often, but not
always, negatively affect the body image of college-age women.
However, these negative effects do not always lead to very dangerous
behaviour, such as changing eating habits or taking diet pills.
Mostly, the negative effects consist of making some women feel as if
they are not thin enough or not as beautiful as models because their
bodies are not similar. However, we also found that many women avoid
magazines or try to remind themselves of the unrealistic nature in
order to preserve their body image.
Overall,
our study has concluded that magazine models do not influence women's
body image or self-esteem. In method one, we concluded that whether
magazine models affect women is dependent upon the women’s general
self-esteem and body image. Our research group also uncovered that
most college-age women never feel as if magazine models have the
ideal body shape, but despite this, many college-age women still
strive to attain this unrealistic ideal. The findings discovered in
method two, which coincide with our results from method one, suggest
that college-age women feel that the body shape of female models in
magazines is an unnatural shape.
Our
results from the overall study are inconsistent with our hypothesis,
which is that female models in magazines influence college-age
women’s body image and self-esteem. Everyday women read
fashion/beauty or health/fitness magazines; however, our study infers
that either college-age women are not influenced by the magazines due
to their confidence with their bodies or the influence of the
magazines industry’s portrayal of thinness has already been
internalised by the age of eighteen to twenty four...
Commentary
The
media is constantly portraying images of skinny women as the “ideal”.
These women are shown as the happiest people that have it all. This
sort of image has adverse effects on women and young girls into
today's society and how they view themselves. Mellisa Hall holds that
research has been done which shows that the media adds pressure on
its audiences to be thin. Research also goes to show that constant
exposure to media content that promotes the thin image as the ideal
image to have not only causes body dissatisfaction issues but it also
leads to dangerous habits in attempt to attain the thin body. This
blog aims to to explore the part that media plays in the cases of
body dissatisfaction amongst women and young girls. The supporting
argument looks at the effects that the portrayal of the thin woman as
the ideal woman has on the female audiences. The negative argument
holds that the media is not to be blamed for body dissatisfaction
issues rather focus should be placed on other causes such social
environment, peer relationships and the individuals own securities or
insecurities.
Research
conducted by Shibley Hyde showed that 50% of women and adolescent
girls were not satisfied with their bodies. Hyde holds that there are
various reasons that contribute towards body dissatisfaction such as
society's influence, and parental influence; however the media focus
on the thin image as the ideal image to have plays a major role when
it comes to the issue of body dissatisfaction. It should be noted
that at times they are plus size women featured in a movie or a
television programme but they shown in a negative light in that they
would be the outcast and the butt of all jokes. This type of
portrayal only gives the audiences the impression that being thin is
the acceptable image. From this it can be gathered that the constant
exposure to such impossible images leads the audiences to accept what
is being shown to them which usually leads to dangerous habits in
hopes of attaining that impossible image. This can be linked to the
concept of preferred dominant reading were by the audiences just
accept what is being fed to them without questioning it. It should
also be noted that it is not only old media that is affecting women
when it come to body image. Research by Dina Borzekowski professor at
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg shows that social media may have a stronger
impact on how people view their bodies in comparison to traditional
media. She holds that “messages and images are more targeted if the
message comes from a friend, it is perceived as more credible and
meaningful.” This can be taken to mean that social media has a
serious impact on body image in comparison to old media because with
social media people are having to compare themselves to people they
actually know rather than models or celebrities that they probably
wont meet.
As
a consequence of these problems recommendations have been made in
attempt of dealing with
the issue. Media activist Jean Kilbourne holds is of the point that
women and young girls should be educated on the nature of media and
the reasons why the woman's image is represented the way that it is.
This means that women and girls should know that the fashion
industry, cosmetic companies and diet industries are are assured a
continual growth and profit through the media presenting an ideal
physical image that is difficult to achieve. Marketers
know that girls and women who are insecure about their bodies are
more likely to buy beauty products, new clothes, and diet aids, and a
whole media industry has developed around fuelling body
dissatisfaction.
The
research paper by Christopher J. Ferguson
holds that peer competition rather than television or social media
exposure is more salient to body and eating issues in teenage girls.
The research further went on to hold that the use of media did not
have any negative effects on body image. The paper focused on the
point that peer competition played a big part in body dissatisfaction
amongst women. This is due to the simply fact that these women and
young girls will compete with the people around them and not with the
skinny woman on tv or in the magazine. However Ferguson noted that
social media may play a role in peer competition, this is a similar
view to the one held in the CNN article titled Facebook: The
encyclopaedia of beauty which holds is that social media plays a huge
role in hows women and girls view their bodies because they are
comparing themselves to their friends. In her paper Mellisa Hall held
that negative friendships can have a negative effects of how young
girls see their bodies. Research by university students showed that
magazine models do not influence women's body image or self esteem,
instead women that are affected are the ones that have body
dissatisfaction issues or low self esteem.
Both
perspectives examined in this blog have credible arguments but the one that is the
most persuasive is the pro argument, which holds that the media plays
a part in how women and young girls view their bodies. The media
should start showing more women who are a healthy and not so thin,
and they should also show the plus size women in a more positive
light.
