A study in the journal Sex Roles has found that pictures of female models in magazines can exert a powerful influence on a woman's feelings about her own body. Interestingly, the women in the study reacted negatively and felt badly regardless of their own weight and size.
Researchers from the University of Missouri-Columbia (UM) conducted the study by measuring how a group of women felt about themselves after viewing models in magazine ads for one to three minutes. In all cases, the women reported a drop in their level of satisfaction with their own bodies.
"Surprisingly, we found that weight was not a factor. Viewing these pictures was just bad for everyone," said UM's Laurie Mintz. "It had been thought that women who are heavier feel worse than a thinner woman after viewing pictures of the thin ideal in the mass media. The study results do not support that theory."
The study suggests that reducing the acceptance of mass media images of women and trying to stop the social comparison process was important for helping all women. "Most women do not go to a counselor for advice; they look to Seventeen or Glamour magazine instead," Mintz said. "These unrealistic images of women, who are often airbrushed or partially computer generated, have a detrimental impact on women and how they feel about themselves."
Related articles:
Female Sexuality - Body Image and Your Sex Life
Low Libido? Body Image Could Be To Blame
Researchers Investigate "Fat Talk"
Report Slams Sexualization Of Girls In Media
Source: University of Missouri
