4.3.2 becker

Question 1

what is the aim of becker’s study?

Answer 1

to investigate the impact of Western attitudes on the eating behaviours and related attitudes of teenage girls

Question 2

describe the sample used in becker’s study

Answer 2

• initial sample consisted of 63 ethnic Fijian girls (mean age 17yrs)
• second sample consisted of 65 ethnic girls of the same age.

Question 3

How many participants were there in the 1995 sample of Becker’s study?

Answer 3

63

Question 4

How many participants were there in the 1998 sample of Becker’s study?

Answer 4

65

Question 5

what type of experiment was used in becker’s study?

Answer 5

quasi experiment (naturally occuring iv)

+ independent groups design

Question 6

state the independent variable in becker’s study

Answer 6

Exposure to Western television

(One group of teen girls were questioned just when television was introduced in Fiji. A different group were questioned 3 years later in 1998)

Question 7

state the dependent variable in becker’s study

Answer 7

• eating behaviour measured by the EAT-26 questionnaire
• and general attitudes to eating and body image through a semi-structured interview

Question 8

what type of data was gathered in becker’s study and how?

Answer 8

both qualitative and quantitative
qualitative - through semi-structured interviews
quantitative - completed EAT-26 questionnaire

Question 9

describe the procedure of becker’s study

Answer 9

Quasi experiment - IV - DV

• Quantitative and qualitative data were collected.
• Girls were interviewed and completed the questionnaires individually in their own homes (translator present to prevent communication issues across cultural divide)
• Height and weight were also measured
• 1998 group were also asked:
  Have you ever tried to change your diet in order to change your weight?
  Do parents or family ever say you should eat more?
  How important is it to you that you like your weight?
  Do you ever think you should eat less?
• Girls who scored over the threshold for dysfunctional eating based on the EAT-26 were given further interviews - these were recorded & transcribed.

Question 10

describe the quantitative results of becker’s study

Answer 10

• Weight did not differ between the first and second sample (BMIs of 24.5 and 24.9 respectively) but TV viewing did increase (41% in 1995 and 71% in 1998 having a TV at home)
• Dysfunctional EAT-26 scores also increased (12.7% scoring over the threshold of 20 in 1995 up to 29.2% in 1998)
• 0% reported purging in 1995, 11.3% in 1998
• in 1998, 74% said they felt too large or fat and 69% had dieted (the latter is important as dieting is alien to Fijian culture)

Question 11

describe the two qualitative findings of Becker

Answer 11

Interviews suggested the girls considered TV characters as role models.

Girls showed a desire to be like them in terms of clothing, hairstyle and body shape. “I want their body… I want their size,” was one girl’s response.

Question 12

describe the conclusions of becker’s study

Answer 12

Women in western TV programmes became role models for Fijian girls, leading them to desire much thinner bodies than was the previous norm in Fiji

(led to a rise in dysfunc eating att + beh and a decline in body image)

Question 13

becker - generalisability

evaluation

Answer 13

P - Limited generalisability

E - The study used 63 girls in 1995 and 65 girls in 1998, which is a small sample to draw conclusion from about the entirety of Fiji, which had a population of 850,000 in 1995.

T - Therefore the results of the study are not representative of the entire Fijian population

Question 14

becker - reliability

evaluation

Answer 14

P - High reliability as it used a standardised procedure and was carefully documented.

E - The EAT-26 questionnaire is widely used in different cultures and is very reliable. The questionnaire was used with both groups and the score over 20 meant the same thing in 1995 as it did in 1998.

T - Therefore the study can be replicated to check for consistent results

Question 15

becker - application

evaluation

Answer 15

P - Findings have applications for tackling eating disorders

E - This study shows that modelling in the mass media may have a negative impact on body image and eating behaviour.
This can be applied to advice for TV programming and advertising by understanding the value of larger size models.
It can also be applied to treatments for EDs because if behaviours and attitudes can be learned through modelling, they can be unlearned in a similar way.

T - Therefore the research is beneficial for society in avoiding and treating eating disorders.

Question 16

becker - validity

evaluation

Answer 16

P - Low internal validity

E - It was a natural experiment where the IV is not being manipulated. There may have been changes in a Fijian society alongside the introduction of television.

T - Therefore it’s difficult to be sure that TV is causing the changes in eating behaviour

Question 17

becker - ethics

Answer 17

To make the study ethical, Dr Becker looked instead for “worrying signs” like increased dieting or induced vomiting. The girls were not diagnosed with anorexia.

Question 18

explain one way becker could improve her stuidy

Answer 18

• one way in which Becker could improve her study is to include a larger sample.
• Becker could gather multiple school girls across the country which could help her increase the generalisability and representative of her study.