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Running head: BODY SATISFACTION 1

Media’s Effect on Body Satisfaction

Sookie Stackhouse

York College of Pennsylvania

BODY SATISFACTION 2

Abstract

With the way that society is today, a strong and very dependent relationship has

developed between the general public and the media. People now rely on the media to give them

answers to everyday problems including how to get a job, how to be a good parent, and how

one’s appearance should be. Countless research has been conducted that proves there is a

negative correlation between media use and an individual’s perception of their body, but the

effects of this correlation are unknown for specific age groups. My research targets the group of

college-aged individuals and how they feel the media affects them.

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Media’s Effect on Body Image

In today’s society the public is constantly being bombarded with both obvious and

subliminal messages of how a normal life should be lived. The media portrays what the ideal

house, family, and especially what the ideal body looks like. Due to this over exposure of what

should be, the public is being affected subconsciously in a negative way. Often times, women

find themselves wanting a smaller overall body size and an increase in breast size, while men

find themselves wanting to be thinner and have an increase in muscle mass when the condition

their current body is what is expected of a woman or man of their age. The media, which most

people do not realize encompasses any form of communication including radio, magazine ads,

and television, is a very dangerous tool that many companies use to take advantage of the highly

susceptible public, particularly young men and women who are trying to find their place in this

world. With so many new changes and difficulties in their lives, teenagers who are within their

first years of college find themselves adopting the unrealistic expectations of the media. York

College students seem no different than the normal college students; therefore, I would like to

determine if the effects of the media are present in the York College community and if they are,

to what degree of severity, and whether or not the effects change between genders.

Numerous experiments have been conducted regarding the behaviors of males and

surprisingly, the results of these experiments typically include societal/cultural effects as well as

the effects of media within the causes of a certain behavior. In an experiment conducted by J. E.

Leone, J. V. Fetro, M. Kittleson, K. J. Welshimer, and S. L. Robertson (2011), teenage boys

were tested in order to determine what the prominent causes were for pursuing negative health

behaviors and risky actions; among the top results was this desire for another’s body, something

the researchers tested by having participants look through fitness magazines. The researchers

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felt as though reading fitness magazines not only had the male participants feel negative about

themselves because the individuals had a poor body image, but the participants would also feel

negative about themselves because they were working to achieve such an image and are failing

to do so. Therefore, they determined that the potency of media can cause psychological issues

(Leone et al., 2011). Another experiment directed by M. McCabe and S. McGreevy (2011)

wanted to specifically test the effects of peers and the media on males. Although men stated that

both were effective when it came to their viewing their own body, the media was much more

effective when it came to losing weight promotions than peers because achieving a lower weight

brought them closer to the ideal body size glorified in the media, more so than increasing their

muscle size. The researchers also stated that those who were dissatisfied with their bodies were

the ones who were the furthest away from the expectations found in the media (McCabe &

McGreevy, 2011), thus showing the importance of the media in a man’s everyday life. The final

experiment found was guided by R. N. Ata, A. Ludden, and M. M. Lally (2007), which focused

on determining the effects of various influences on a teenager’s perception of their body. The

experiment yielded that males were susceptible to these influences, which included social media,

when it came to increase that size of their upper bodies (Ata et al., 2007). Therefore the

question is not if social media affects men, but rather in what way it affects them.

A wide variety of experiments have also been conducted to determine the reasons behind

women’s behaviors, and not unlike men, the result from these experiments stated that women are

influenced by social/cultural effects and the effects of media. An experiment conducted by M.

Tiggemann and J. Polivy (2010) showed that when viewing pictures of models that are

commonly depicted in the media, women experienced a decrease in mood when asked to

compare both their physical appearance and intellectual level to the photo shown. Researchers

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also found that within the two comparison instructed groups, there was a lower percentage rate of

product and brand recollection which hints at the fact that social comparison is one of the most

prominent forces that lead women to developing body dissatisfaction (Tiggemann & Polivy,

2010). E.F. Racine, R. D. Debate, K. P. Gabriel, and R. R. High (2011) conducted an

experiment solely focused on the idea of media effecting young females. This experiment found

that as media use increases, commitment to physical activity and self-esteem decreases. The

researchers conclude that because these girls are spending more time exposing themselves to the

media, they decrease the amount of time they spend doing other activities (in this case physical

activities) while increasing the amount of time they are being told they are not perfect in regards

to societal standards (Racine et al., 2011). With long term exposure to this type of lifestyle,

these young females could develop dangerous health behaviors at a young age and carry them

into their adult lives. In R. N. Ata’s (2007) experiment, which was referenced earlier, they also

discovered that females were just as if not more susceptible to various influences imposed upon a

teenager, but they were affected in a different way. Girls in the experiment expressed how they

are pressured to decrease the overall size of their bodies by the tested societal influences (Ata et

al., 2007). Therefore the problem is determining what parts of the media are considered

dangerous and harmful to the public and how their effects can be reversed.

In order to do so one has to understand why something so vital to a society can also be

one of its main sources of conflict. The media or as it’s known on a larger scale, mass media, is

defined as any channel of communication that transmits information in any form to a large

number of people (Livesey, 2011). Within today’s society technology has morphed into

something that it almost uncontrollable, and anyone can voice their opinion about anything,

which is why communication has become so dangerous. Pictures, which are modified to the

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point where the final product looks nothing like the original, of thin and well-toned models are

inescapable for they are used in almost every form of communication. The very impressionable

public compares themselves to these photos and have an ever increasing sense of body

dissatisfaction. Because of this sense, people (both men and women) begin to develop very

unhealthy behaviors including anorexia and bulimia. Although the exact causes of both anorexia

and bulimia are currently unknown it is believed that when thin body types are promoted in a

society (Anorexia, 2013) or certain cultural and social factors are in play these disorders are

more common to develop (Bulimia, 2012). However there have been some experiments done to

help prevent the media and its negative effects. C. J. Haas, L. A. Pawlow, J. Pettibone, and D. J.

Segrist (2012) tested to see if spreading the common myths and facts about the human body

would cause an increase the participant’s overall body esteem. The researchers discovered that

when both average and overweight participants became aware of these myths, over a six week

study, the experiment seemed to positively affect the participant’s body esteem (Haas et al.,

2012). In the experiment directed by E. Halliwell, A. Easun and D. Harcourt (2011), participants

watched an intervention video before being asked to compare themselves to pictures of models to

see if the video could help dissolve the effects the pictures had on the participants. The results

showed that the video did in fact help the participants for the participants who viewed it showed

little to no signs of body dissatisfaction, where as those who did not watch the video did

(Halliwell et al. 2011). Society today has reached a point of no return when it comes to media

use and because it is so difficult to regulate and control, it is lucky that solutions are starting to

be discovered and implemented.

In conclusion, it is not a secret that the media has an influence on both genders in today’s

society. There are numerous credible experiments that have confirmed that there are influences

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and effects derived from the media on the public; however, these experiments have failed when it

comes to determining exactly what the effects are and what the outcomes are on certain

individuals. There are too many variables to be considered such as gender, age, cultural

influences, and environment as well as too many possible outcomes of this influence such as

anorexia, bulimia, and risky actions, to discover them all. Therefore, I hope that my research

will help establish what kind of affects the media has on a specific group such as York College

students and determine if our community is an exception to what has been found or if it follows

suit with confirmed results.

Methodology

Participants

The individuals who willingly participated in my study consisted of current York College

of Pennsylvania students between the ages of 17 and 27. These students were of various

unidentified backgrounds and my sample consisted of both males and females. The targeted

individuals for my experiment were males and females in their college years because that’s the

group my research question inquired about. Although no specific age was targeted in my

experiment, majority of the results came from students who were 19 years old with the mean age

being 18.94. Out of the 200 surveys conducted, 86 of the respondents were male and 114 of the

respondents were female.

Instrument

The instrument used to test my research question was a ten question survey which was

focused around the subject of media and the effects it has on the individuals’ body image. One

question was a variation of the Likert scale, which asked the participants awareness of the

BODY SATISFACTION 8

models used in the media, one question asked for the participants opinion on the amount of

media they use in a day, three questions were of the multiple choice/yes or no answer format,

and the final three questions asked the participants to choose an answer that was based off of an

image provided. I chose this type of instrument because of its simplicity and effectiveness when

it comes to getting a large sample of people’s opinions on a particular subject.

Procedure

In order to get a minimum of 200 participants I asked two of my professors if they would

be willing to distribute/allow me to distribute my survey to their classes. The professors I chose

were in the communication and sociology fields to assure that I wouldn’t be surveying the

students of one particular group or the same students repeatedly. Also in addition to the classes,

I handed out surveys to several students in the dorms I frequently visit on main campus.

Specifically 82 of the 200 surveys were gathered from the sociology classes, 96 surveys were

gathered from the communication classes, and 22 surveys were gathered from the students I

asked in the dorms.

Results

When asked about the average amount of time spent using some form of media, the

participants had answers that ranged anywhere between one to twenty hours. The average for the

entire group of participants was 5.87 hours with 6 hours as the mode. When looking at each

gender specifically females used media for about an average of 6.29 hours and males used media

for about 5.31 hours. In relation to this question another was asked which addressed the

awareness of the particpants regarding the models used in the media. The majority of the

participants (62%) chose the “sometimes aware” option for their answer and only three

BODY SATISFACTION 9

participants (1.5%) chose the “never

aware” option as their answer.

The questions displayed in the

graphs to the right were then asked to

determine the effects the media had

on the participants. In graph #1,

more females (88.60%) felt that the

media falis to portray a realistic body

image for both genders than males

(66.28%). More males (20.93%) felt

that the media portrays a realistic

image for both males and females

than females (7.89%). Also, more

males (12.79%) felt that the media

portrays a realistic image for solely

males than females (3.51%) and

neither gender decided that the media

portrays a realistic image for solely

females. In graph #2, more females

(64.91%) admitted to comparing

themselves to the models in the

media than males (29.07%). In graph

#3, the most prominent effect the

Males Females0

20

40

60

80

100

120

Does the Media Portray a Real-istic Body Image?

Realistic for BothRealistic for MenRealistic for WomenNot Realistic for Either

Male v.s. Female Opinion

Num

ber o

f Eac

h Re

spon

se

Males Females0

1020304050607080

Do You Compare Yourself to the Models in the Media?

YesNoSometimes


Num

ber o

f Eac

h Re

spon

se

Males Females0

10

20

30

40

50

In What Way Are You Pressured by the Media to Change Your

Body?Change My WeightBecome More MuscularChange My Overall Body ShapeNot Pressured


Num

ber o

f Eac

h Re

spon

se

Graph #1

Graph #2

Graph #3

BODY SATISFACTION 10

media had on females was the belief that they needed to change their weight (38.60%), followed

by the belief that they needed to change their overall body shape (24.56%), then the belief that

they needed to become more muscular (11.40%), and there was a significant portion of the

females that were not pressured by the media to change (25.44%). The most prominent effect

the media had on males was the belief that they needed to become more muscular (36.05%),

followed by the belief that they needed to change their overall body shape (15.12%), then the

belief that they needed to change their weight (4.65%), and the majority of the males decided

that they were not pressured by the media to change (44.19%).

The last grouping for questions required the use of image #1. The first question asked

what the media portrayed as the “Beautiful Norm” and both males and females on average felt

that the second figure from the left

was the answer. The second

question asked what figure matched

up with the participants current

body image and both males and

females on average felt that the

third figure from the left looked like

them. The last question asked

which figure the participants would most like to have and on average the males decided the third

figure from the left was the figure they would want, while on average the females decided they

would want the second figure from the left the most.

Discussion/Conclusion

Image #1


Based on the results it seems as though York College is not an exception when it comes

to the media having an effect on how people view themselves. There were only a few responses

out of the 200 surveys conducted that hinted students were happy with the way their bodies were

and just as the secondary research hinted at, females appeared to be more easily effected by the

media and its effects (shown through the graphs in the results section). Also another similarity

between the primary and secondary research was the belief that males want to become more

muscular, while females want to become thinner/smaller in size when influenced by the media.

However unlike the secondary research suggested, majority of the males surveyed seemed to not

be pressured by the media to change their appearance in relation to overall body structure and

shape. This could be due to the fact that the majority of males who took my survey answered

that their current body type was also the body type they considered the media to portray as the

beautiful norm.

Several limitations of my experiment should be addressed. The way I went about asking

potential participants to answer my survey was not done in a random or even in a stratified

random way. Therefore bias could exist because an appropriate sample was not taken and

confounding variables may be in play. Another limitation would be that for some of the surveys

distributed, the participants saw me in person. My presence might have adjusted the manner in

which some participants answered, for they might have feared that I would look at their answers

and judge them accordingly. Lastly, I should have changed the sample size itself. Because I was

focusing on genders, I should have asked 200 males and 200 females to participate in my survey

for more accurate results.

For further research I would like to take a smaller group of each gender of York College

of Pennsylvania students and perform a more specific experiment to truly determine the effects


media has on them; perhaps one that involves a certain span of time and limiting the use of

media exposure to see if one group has a happier self-image then the other. Something like this

would be able to provide stronger evidence to determine whether or not the students of York

College are affected by the media than the results gathered from my experiment. Also, we could

determine which gender is more vulnerable to the effects and what specific effects the media has

on this specific age group in the population. From here solutions might then be able to be

discussed and put into action.


References

Anorexia Nervosa. (2013). In Medline Plus. Retrieved on March 20, 2013, from http://www.

nlm. nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000362.htm

Ata, R. N., Ludden, A., & Lally, M. M. (2007). The effects of gender and family, friend, and

media influences on eating behaviors and body image during adolescence. Journal Of

Youth And Adolescence, 36(8), 1024-1037. Retrieved on March 19, 2013, from

http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.ycp.edu

Bulimia. (2012). In Medline Plus. Retrieved on March 20, 2013, from http://www.nlm.nih.gov/

medlineplus/ency/article/000341.htm

Haas, C. J., Pawlow, L. A., Pettibone, J., & Segrist, D. J. (2012). An intervention for the negative

influence of media on body esteem. College Student Journal, 46(2), 405-418. Retrieved

on March 20, 2013, from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.ycp.edu

Halliwell, E., Easun, A., & Harcourt, D. (2011). Body dissatisfaction: can a short media literacy

message reduce negative media exposure effects amongst adolescent girls?. British

Journal Of Health Psychology, 16(2), 396-403. doi:10.1348/135910710X515714.

Retrieved on March 19, 2013, from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.ycp.edu

Leone, J. E., Fetro, J. V., Kittleson, M., Welshimer, K. J., & Robertson, S. L.(2011). Predictors

of adolescent male body image dissatisfaction: implications for negative health practices

and consequences for school health from a regionally representative sample. Journal Of

School Health, 81(4), 174-184. doi:10.1111/j.1746-1561.2010.00577.x. Retrieved on

March 19, 2013, from http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.ycp.edu


Livesey, C. (2011). The Mass Media: Defining the Mass Media. Retrieved on March 20, 2013

from http://www.sociology.org.uk/media_defined.pdf

McCabe, M., & McGreevy, S. (2011). Role of media and peers on body change strategies among

adult men: is body size important?. European Eating Disorders Review, 19(5), 438-446.

doi:10.1002/erv.1063. Retrieved on March 20, 2013, from


Racine, E. F., Debate, R.D., Gabriel, K.P., High, R.R. (2011). The relationship between media

use and psychological and physical assets among third- to fifth-grade girls. Journal Of

School Health, 81(12), 749-755. Retrieved on March 19, 2013, from


Tiggemann, M., & Polivy, J. (2010). Upward and downward: social comparison processing of

thin idealized media images. Psychology Of Women Quarterly, 34(3),

356-364.:10.1111/j.1746-1561.2011.00654.x. Retrieved on March 19, 2013, from



AppendixMale/Female:_____________ Age:____________

The media or as it’s known on a larger scale, mass media, is defined as any channel of communication that transmits information in any form to a large number of people (Livesey,

2011)With that in mind, how many hours a day do you spend using a form of media?

When using any form of media, how conscious are you of the models that are depicted?___Always aware ___Sometimes aware ___Hardly aware ___Never aware

Do you feel the media portrays a realistic body image for both men and women?___Yes, it portrays a realistic image for both men and women___Yes, it portrays a realistic image for men___Yes, it portrays a realistic image for women___No, it does not portray a realistic image

Do you find yourself comparing your own body to those that are depicted in the media?

Have you ever felt pressured to change your body when looking at models depicted in the media, if so in what way?___I feel pressured to change my overall body shape___I feel pressured to change my weight___I feel pressured to become more muscular___I am not pressured by the media to change my body

The next three questions pertain to the image provided (Numbering 1-9 starting on the left):Which of the nine figures do you think the media portrays as being “the beautiful norm”?

Which of the nine figures resembles your current body shape?

If you could choose, which of the nine figures would you choose to look like?

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