Basic Concepts Flashcards
Body Image
People’s body image is the picture they have in their minds of how other people see them. This picture may or may not be accurate. Your body image forms part of your self-concept. Horn and Gurel (1981:141) explain that your culture determines what you will consider to be the ideal body shape. Some cultures will prefer women to be nicely rounded, while in others only the very thin is considered beautiful. We only have to look at all the advertisements for losing weight, changing our hair colour, adding make-up, and even surgically changing our appearance with face-lifts or lipo- suction to realise how important it is for many people to look like their cultural ideal of beauty.
Clothing can be used to bring perceived and ideal body images closer together. A woman will wear a padded bra if she thinks her bosom is too small, or a tight girdle if her behind is too large. (When asked to give an example of how body image is defined culturally, your answer must relate to body image, and not just clothing in general!)
Body Cathexis
A person’s body cathexis is the degree to which the person is satisfied with his or her own body. Your body cathexis is closely related to your self-esteem.
Self Concept
A person’s self-concept has been defined as the individual’s perception of his or her own characteristics, his or her abilities or failings, his or her appearance, and the total organisation of characteristics which he or she perceives as distinguishing him or her as an individual (Ryan, 1966:82). The relationship between a person’s self-concept and his or her clothing works both ways. While clothing plays an important part in establishing the self-concept, the self-concept influences a person’s choice of clothing.
