TITLE

AN INTERVENTION FOR THE NEGATIVE INFLUENCE OF MEDIA ON BODY ESTEEM

AUTHOR(S)

HAAS, CHERYL J.; PAWLOW, LAURA A.; PETTIBONE, JON; SEGRIST, DAN J.

PUB. DATE

June 2012

SOURCE

College Student Journal;Jun2012, Vol. 46 Issue 2, p405

SOURCE TYPE

Academic Journal

DOC. TYPE

Article

ABSTRACT

Since research suggests that media pressure to be thin causes individuals to have negative feelings about their appearances, this research aimed to test whether exposing college students to some common myths about female images in the media may be part of the solution to fostering a healthier body image. In this study, a 2 (Group: Experimental or Control) x 3 (Time: Baseline, Post Media Exposure, Post Media Truth Presentation) mixed design ANOVA was utilized with 80 women per group. Both groups completed the Body-Esteem Scale three times approximately two weeks apart each: at baseline, after media exposure, and after an intervention designed to educate women both about the typical female body and also about how the media often skews our perception of the typical female body. Interaction effects and post-hoc analyses revealed significant positive changes in the experimental group's view of their overall body esteem, sexual attractiveness, and weight after a Media Truth Presentation, indicating that this intervention had a positive effect on women's views about themselves. Also of note, the intervention appeared to be equally effective for both average-and over-weight women.

ACCESSION #

77698071

Tags: BODY image in mass media;  MASS media -- Psychological aspects;  BODY image in women;  SELF-esteem in women;  WOMEN college students -- Psychology;  SELF-perception in women;  SEXUAL attraction -- Research;  WOMEN in mass media;  BODY mass index

 

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