Should The Media Promote Cultural Ideas Of Thinness And Beauty?

A recent Psychology Today survey indicated the significant impact the media has in promoting “cultural ideas of thinness and beauty” (Gamer, 1997). Out of the 3,452 women who responded to the survey, 23% indicated that movie or television celebrities influenced their body image when they were young. According to this research article, 83% percent of teenage girl’s report spending about 4.3 hour a week read magazines for pleasure or for school. 70% of the girls who read the magazines “endorse them as an important source of beauty and fitness information (Levine & Smolak, 1996). Furthermore, the study found that girls who watched more than 8 hours of television a week reported greater body dissatisfaction than girls with less television exposure. To further prove the correlation, a study was done on individuals with different levels of bulimic symptoms. The participants were shown photographs of thin, average, and oversized models. Those that were shown the thinner models reported significantly less self-esteem and weight

We plan to collaborate with school principals, guidance counselors, and school psychologists on the issue of eating disorders and the effect of societal pressures and prevention. We will distribute surveys via mail asking students about their favorite magazines, social networks, and TV shows and their view on body image. We will conduct a quantitative research methodology through analyzing the data that we will obtain from the collected surveys. Once we receive our results, we will analyze our data to conclude if there is indeed a correlation between the effects of social media on development of eating disorders. We will be sure to follow the IRB code of ethics throughout the entire research ensuring confidentiality and anonymity of the participants. We hope to succeed and to receive positive and accurate