6. Media & Body Image Flashcards
body image
an individual’s perceptions and evaluations of their body
- Particularly appearance-based
Body image disturbance
demonstrably inaccurate perceptions, or discontent with one or more of the body’s observable features
evidence of body dissatisfaction in children?
6-8 yr olds -> desire for thinness (girls) , drive for muscularity (boys)
is Disordered eating linked to lower life expectancy and health.?
ya
- Body image = disrupts relationships, increases steroid use, vanity-driven spending, self-esteem and mental health
how are bodies represented in screen media (tv, movies)
- Overrepresentation of thinness
- Underrepresentation of fatness
–> Fat characters more likely to be insulted, insults more likely to be followed by laughter (MOST TRUE with FEMALE CHARACTERS)
–> Fat characters depicted with fewer romances, fewer friends, having less sex, having fewer leadership roles
—reinforces message of fatness as ridicule—
how are bodies represented in CHILDREN’S screen media (tv, movies)
In cartoons and children’s videos, thinner characters more likely to display positive characteristics (Concerns regarding physical appearance is often subtle.)
how are bodies represented in viddy games
- Female characters often depicted as thin with large breasts
- Male characters often depicted as hyper-muscularized
explain Hargreaves & Tiggeman (2004) Idealized media images and adolescent body image: ”comparing” boys and girls.
grade 8-12 shown “ideal body” commercial (thin for women, muscular for men), or non-apppearance focused -> asked to rate body dissatisfaction after
results
big difference for women (higher in body dissatisfaction and appearance comparison after “ideal” commercial
why less consistent for boys?
- Differences in self-concept/self-esteem across genders?
- Different ages in which boys are more impacted by idealized media?
- Study in university men found an impact.
- Differences in media representations of idealized bodies across genders?
- Differences in baseline self-esteem?
- Challenges in assessing body image in boys?
- Old studies → would the same thing be found today?
what do experimental studies find
after being exposed to idealized media, there is an INCREASE in body dissatisfaction
eg: Experimental study found participants had LESS body satisfaction after watching an appearance based music video
LIMITATIONS OF EXPERIMENTAL
- Short-term effects
- Lab environment = non-realistic
what do Correlational research find
overall correlations between media exposure and body image do not always show associations
- messier data
- less consistent than experimental
why do they differ?
- May show longer-term predictions?
- May depend on content?
- Or, may depend on what sort of thinking is being done while consuming media
what did they find after measuring grade 2-4 girls
Measured TV viewing and body ideal but did not find correlation
BUT
predicted body ideal at 1 year later
(Maybe it’s just a slow effect?)
what matters?
CONTENT
Soap opera viewing specifically → negative relationship to body image (more viewing, less happy with body)
natural experiment ????
Examined Fijian teenage girls before and 3 years after the arrival of Western TV
- Observed increase in disordered eating and dieting
- Virtually no examples before this (1995)
77% said -> TV had influenced their body image
- Seemed to show an idea that thinness = success
meta anlysis results
small (but significant) links between media and body dissatisfaction
-> other factors involved
factors that matter (3)
- gender (research mostly on girls)
- pre-existing body dissatisfaction (Individuals who already have high levels of dissatisfaction = more influenced)
- race/ethnicity (More influence of same-race characters; Different impacts between individuals of different races, and/or by characters of different races?)
Social Comparison Theory
- We compare ourselves to others
- Upwards, downwards, lateral
- Our self-evaluation is relative to our evaluation to others
Theory: we also evaluate ourselves relative to those seen via media
- Are these comparisons different?
Internalization of Thin Ideals
Society’s message → thin = better; muscular = better
- Message transmitted via media
- We internalize this message
- Failure to live up to this standard → greater body dissatisfaction
Contingent Self-Worth Theory
Society’s message → your value is determined by appearance
- Message transmitted through media
- Failure to meet thin/muscular ideals can lead to negative self-worth, which turns to body dissatisfaction
are these theories mutually exclusive?
nah, can all be true
likely to be all or combination of some
leaked facebook research
Surveys and interviews with teens → 30% girls reported worse body image after using Instagram
biases in social media research
- Responses to question re: body image might influence this
- Biases in self-report
- Perception = not accurate
- Correlational
difference between social media and trad media
- Internet based platforms/sites that allow users to create, share, and exchange their own content
-> Bidirectional relationship - Content comes from peers as well as mass media sources
difference between social media and face-to-face interactions
Can control how you present yourself
- Curated view of yourself
Permanence and publicness
- Persists over time—post is often there forever
- Public
Quantifiability: numerical social metrics
- Likes, comments, etc.
Does Social Media Impact Body Image?
Most (not all!) research does suggest there is an overall small link between social media use and body dissatisfaction
do effects of social media differ from trad media ? or face-to-face ?
using an ETA (more accurate in the moment, gives you lots of data) -> most comparisons = in-person (Comparing yourself to someone in-person who is more relevant to you has a larger effect than someone online)
most common comparison in this study?
upward
most diverse? (down, up, lateral)
in-person
which upward comparison led to the lowest appearance satisfaction?
social media
factors that matter -> platform type
more consistent findings from image-based platforms
factors that matter -> Different types of social media activities
image-based -> most negative
- selfies
- viewing / posting (no difference b/w editing and posting & only editing)
- feedback (likes, comments, etc.)
factors that matter -> gender
Similar effects across genders
- Maybe due to age (boys hit at an older age)
- Type of content (more muscular/targeted content on social media for men)
positive social media (3)
Viewing ”Instagram vs Reality” posts
- Potentially increase body image
Parodies of thin-ideal media
Body positive content
- Content that rejects body ideals
- Varies depending on how content is received (pandering =/= positive)
limitations of current research (3)
mainly correlational
mostly focused on young adults
social media -> constantly changing
define media literacy
Making sense about media, consider why media is presented and what the function of certain media is
components of media literacy (3)
- Reality skepticism
- Is this a real depiction?
- Similarity skepticism
- Is this a relevant comparison to me?
- Critical thought
- What is their attention, who are they trying to influence
positive effects of teaching media literacy
Students enrolled in media literacy programs (in high school) show less internalization of the thin ideal, less drive for thinness, and more body satisfaction
