Body Image and Society's Expectations
Body image of a woman is defined by her negative or positive perception. The bodies image is influenced by the facial characteristics, body shape, and overall appearance. In this new era, the media has the power to control women's idea of a good body which ends up lowering women's self-esteem which leads to a decrease in their productivity. Harter (1998) found that twenty-five percent of adolescent girls were occupied with "how they appear in the eyes of others [20]." Thinking about it but not too deeply, how many photos do they take before uploading the right photo on social media? They must have the right angle; the booty needs to look big, and their tummy needs to be sucked all the way in to achieve the likes and comment they desire. Majority of this photos shared online are edited to enhance body appearance. All this is done to make sure they live up to the society's expectation of what they define as the "perfect body?" women are challenged with the constant pressure of needing to look appealing for the pleasure of other people. But what is the ideal body shape and size of a woman? Finding comfort in the skin they are in is the first step to self-love and confidence because the real key to self-happiness is accepting yourself.
The Importance of Self-Acceptance
First, to achieve this goal, women must be true to themselves. It is not what they surround themselves with but who they surround themselves with. For example, if you feel undesirably attractive, whether, with weight, height, sex or whatever it may be, and you place yourself with a group of women who are confident in their appearance, but does not motivate you to feel as optimistic about yourself in the way they do, then you will feel alone in room filled with people and that is an unhealthy lifestyle. What do you think will happen next? Competing is what will happen, but friends should not compete with one another. According to conventional conceptions of attitude, the degree of dissatisfaction is determined by the number of negative beliefs and the degree to which these beliefs are negatively charged (Fishbein & Ajzen, 1975). In the movie "Phat Girlz" starring Mo'Nique, there were three African American girlfriends including her, in which two of them were plus size women and one thin. As Mo'Nique tried to make it in the fashion designing industry but was not accepted because of her size and shape. Studies have shown that one negative comment can have a long-lasting impact on one life. Where do we get off judging other people? Women that are plus sized than women that are "of the norm" lives matter as much. We as human beings are accountable for others' happiness because everyone is not as strong to handle constructive criticism. "Thinking negatively about one's appearance may be a significant source of unhappiness; therefore women should stop trying to fit one specific body ideal. Being positive about yourself as a woman and strictly focus on yourself can assist in overcoming these insecurities.
The Influence of Media and Societal Pressures
Cusumano and Thompson (1997) examine the relative influences of media exposure, awareness of societal pressures regarding appearance, and internalization of this socio-cultural pressure on body image, eating disturbance, and self-esteem in "Body Image and body shape ideals in magazines. Who says magazines models are ideal? Who came up with that theory? Thomsen's (2002) study "Health and Beauty Magazine Reading and Body Shape concerns among a group of college women," proposed testing a structural equation model which incorporates several mediating processes through which beauty/fashion, health/fitness magazines might influence the college-age female's fear of being fat. When living in fear, a woman is missing out on life's amazing opportunities and suffocating her happiness because she only exists in a world filled with the importance of other opinions of her more so her perception of herself. What does your health mean to you as a woman? Starving, stressing, and worrying about other people and their thoughts of you are not healthy. It appears "your image" means more to society than your health. According to Sarah Harris (Daily Mail), "a spiraling number of teenage girls are putting their health at risk by starving themselves in an attempt to lose weight. It is unfortunate to see many girls and women going through the stereotype because of their weight, shape, and size. Imagine how many women hide in the dark: How many women do not believe that they are not beautiful; how many women go the extreme just to feel important because society is teaching them that if you do not appear a certain way, you are not beautiful.
Embracing Individuality and Self-Worth
Women should understand that there is more to them than their bodies. When their bodies become the most crucial element of their lives, they become lost with who they are and why they are there. It is ok to seek changes in your body but because you want that change for yourself and not for the aim of competing with other fellow women in society. Social comparison theory suggests it is natural for humans to compare themselves to others. This theory can be associated with female intersexual competition whereby women with feminine characters have higher chances of mating as they easily attract males. From this theory, we can conclude that the editing of body images in women, cosmetic surgeries, and working on diets can be the strategies that they use to find their mates. Some recent studies have proven that children at a younger age who are excessively consumed by media are at a higher risk of being obese in the process of dealing with depression and deteriorating self-image. Parents should be responsible for encouraging their children to have healthy lifestyles from a tender age so that when they grow into more significant women, they will not rely on social networks on the diet that will starve them. Also, the government should not concentrate much on the financial advantages from media and advertising companies to achieve a positive outlook for women in society. Women even should understand that in those advertisements the women's attractive bodies are only used to promote the company's product. They don't represent all women out there so as they go comparing themselves with them. Lastly, developing a sharp mind and some strategies to help face your reality is one of many steps to start with. It is ok to have role models, but it is unhealthy to become mesmerized by the bodies of another. Brown and Tiggeman (2016) "Research on the impact of social media on women's body image verifies that exposure to images of attractive celebrities and peers harms their self-image." What makes you unique is simply "you" as a woman. Go out into the world and embrace who you are. Get familiarized with yourself, love your body, and internalize your worth. The desire to be who you are as a woman and not someone else!
Works Cited
Seyed Reza Alvani, Seyed Mehrshad Parvin Hosseini, Laurel Wynne Kimura (2016) Relationship between Body Weight and Self-Esteem: A Study of Young Men and Women in Iran. J Obes Overweig 2(2): 202. doi: 10.15744/2455-7633.2.202
Verplanken, Bas and Yonne Tangelder. "No Body Is Perfect: The Significance of Habitual Negative Thinking about Appearance for Body Dissatisfaction, Eating Disorder Propensity, Self-Esteem and Snacking." Psychology & Health, vol. 26, no. 6, June 2011, pp. 685-701. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1080/08870441003763246.
Harris, Sarah. 2018. More girls are starving themselves to stay thin
"Phat Girlz Review." Entertainment Weekly. April 12, 2006. Retrieved May 5, 2012.
Thomsen, Steven R. 2002. “Health and beauty magazine reading and body shape concerns among a group of college women.” Journalism and Mass Communication Quarterly 79: 4: 988-1007.
Cusumano, Dale L., and Kevin Thompson. 1997. "Body image and body shape ideals in magazines: Exposure, awareness, and internalization." Sex Roles 37: 701-721.
Taylor, Julia V., and Melissa Atkins Wardy. The Body Image Workbook for Teens: Activities to Help Girls Develop a Healthy Body Image in an Image-Obsessed World. Instant Help, 2014. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.clayton.edu:2048/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=920047&site=eds-live&scope=site.
CLARK, NANCY. "Social Media and Body Image: #Fitspiration at Its Worst." American Fitness, vol. 35, no. 2, Spring2017, pp. 66-68. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.clayton.edu:2048/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=hxh&AN=122675133&site=eds-live&scope=site.
