Effect of Exposure to Media Images
on Perceptual Body Image Distortion
and Affective Dissatisfaction
Angie French & Blair Terrell
Hanover College
What
is the Question
Research
perfect woman?
 How
does1991)
exposure
(Nichter
& Nichter,
to these
images
- 5’7”,
100 lbs,
influence
how
- long
blonde
Most hair
fashion
- blue
eyes
women
feel meet
about
models
themselves
and
their
weight criteria for
bodies?
anorexiadistortion
nervosa.
 Perceptual
(Kalodner, 1997)
 Social Comparison –
(comparison of self
to others) Media is everywhere!
Hypothesis
Exposure to
Media Images
of the
Sociocultural
Ideal
Social
Comparison
Perceptual
Body
Image
Distortion
Increased
Affective Body
Image
Dissatisfaction
Participants
 49 female students from Hanover
College
 Mean age = 19
 48 – Caucasian
1 – Pacific Islander
Phase 1
 Two weeks prior to Phase 2
 Social Comparison questionnaire and
personal information
 Frequency of Social Comparison Scale
(Fujita, 1996)
 Determines how prone an individual is to
compare herself to others
 Alpha = .90
 Anonymity protection—code
Street name + last 4 digits from SSN
Phase 2
 PowerPoint slide show of 30 fitness,
fashion/beauty, or neutral images from
popular magazines
Selection criteria:
--Only one model per image
--3/4 length body shot
--no overlaid type
--no product shown
(criteria from Waller, Hamilton, & Shaw, 1992)
Fitness
Fashion/
Beauty
Neutral
 Adjustable Light Beam Apparatus
(Thompson & Spana, 1988)
 Measures perceived size of cheeks, waist, and hips
 Actual body size measure
 Perceptual distortion =
discrepancy between
perceived and actual
body size of cheeks,
waist, and hips
(Alpha = .8697)
 Eating Disorders Inventory
(Garner, Olmstead, & Polivy, 1983)
 Drive for Thinness scale
 Body Dissatisfaction scale
 Alpha = .9351
Results
Does media exposure influence perceptual distortion?
Exposure to
Media Images
of the
Sociocultural
Ideal
Social
Comparison
Perceptual
Body
Image
Distortion
Increased
Affective Body
Image
Dissatisfaction
YES
Discrepancy (Inches)
Perceptual Distortion
4.5
4
3.5
3
2.5
2
1.5
1
0.5
0
 Amount of distortion
varied significantly
across three conditions,
F (1,45) = 3.24, p <
.05
3.9
2.7
F
B
Media Condition
1.9
 The only post hoc
comparison that was
significant was
between beauty and
neutral, p < .05.
N
 Supports previous
research  Exposure
to beauty images
increases distortion
Results
Dissatisfaction means do
not vary significantly
Dissatisfaction does
across media
conditions
not
correlate with
distortion
Exposure to
Media Images
of the
Sociocultural
Ideal
Social
Comparison
Perceptual
Body
Image
Distortion
Increased
Affective Body
Image
Dissatisfaction
Moderating variable
comes into the picture
Results cont.
Social Comparison
Low
High
4
3.5
3.36
Satisfaction
2.5
3.23 3.3
3.24
 Significant interaction
found between social
comparison and media
condition (F (5, 42) =
2.77, p = .03).
2.8
3
 Split Social Comparison
into “Low” and “High”
categories.
2.32
2
1.5
1
0.5
0
F
B
Media Condition
N
 The only significant
difference between the
means was found in
fitness condition (t (15)
= 2.4, p = .03).
Discussion
 Two media conditions  different effects
 Beauty images influence perception (distortion)
 Fitness images influence emotion (dissatisfaction)
4.5
4
3.5
3
2.5
2
1.5
1
0.5
0
Low
High
4
3.9
3.5
3.36
2.7
1.9
2.5
3.23 3.3
3.24
2.8
3
Satisfaction
Discrepancy (Inches)
Social Comparison
2.32
2
1.5
1
0.5
0
F
B
Media Condition
N
F
B
Media Condition
N
Fitness  Dissatisfaction
 Message behind the fitness images
 Idea of achievability
 But is it really achievable?
 Exposure  GUILT  Dissatisfaction
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Beauty  Distortion
 Beauty images thinner than fitness images
 Less guilt because only option of attainability is to
take drastic, unhealthy measures (e.g., drug use,
eating disorder)
Average woman
fitness
beauty
Weight
Limitations
 Non-representative sample
 48 Caucasian & 1 Pacific Islander
 Homemade equipment
 Interrater reliability
Questions