Ignorance is Bliss

I recently ran across a video produced by the Jubilee Project in which fifty adults and children were asked the question, “If you could change one thing about your body, what would it be?” Without hesitation, the adults chose a flaw they wished to change. In contrast, the children did not express any body image dissatisfaction and in some cases vocally refuted the existence of displeasure with their body. 

 

I do not find these results particularly surprising, but what I do find intriguing is why this shift in body satisfaction exists. Many of the adults state that they had been teased as a child for a physical attribute, but I do not believe that teasing is the sole attributer to their dissatisfaction. I believe that the media serves a socializer that glorifies and shames certain body types. 

 

I therefore predict that many children make fun of others because they have been taught by the media what is and is not considered attractive. Physical ideals are introduced to children and are then solidified as they mature and gain additional media exposure. Unfortunately, this increased media exposure often serves as a source of anxiety that further increases their body dissatisfaction. For example, Aubrey and Taylor (2009) found that exposure to lad magazines influenced body self-consciousness as well as appearance anxiety and appearance-related motivations for exercise.  

I think that this video does an excellent job of identifying a societal problem, but it does not suggest a cause or offer a solution. I believe that for videos like this to be impactful they cannot just evoke thought but need to influence change in the areas that induce these negative thoughts.

I am apparently not the only person who thinks that action needs to be taken to stop, or at the least mitigate, the negative effects of these unrealistic portrayals. Women in the U.K. are initiating change with their #IAmPerfect movement!

U.K. residents state that the Victoria’s Secret lingerie brand is body shaming and promoting an unrealistic standard of beauty in their latest advertising campaign. These women have created a petition demanding that the company to change the wording on their advertisements so that they do not encourage unrealistic beauty standards as well as ““pledge to not 

use such harmful marketing in the future””.

 
It is apparent that the media physically discriminates, and consequently cultivates a societal environment in which individuals are judged based on their appearance. It is therefore evident that diverse depictions need to be incorporated and promoted within the media, but since this is likely to be a slow induction I suggest consuming less corporate media and producing more of your own!

Aubrey, J. S., & Taylor, L. D. (2009). The Role of Lad Magazines in Priming Men’s Chronic and Temporary Appearance‐Related Schemata: An Investigation of Longitudinal and Experimental Findings. Human Communication Research, 35(1), 28-58.