Of Kate Moss & Marilyn Monroe: Body Dissatisfaction and its Relation to Media Consumption, Body Mass Index and Self-Esteem in Malaysian College Women

Year 2014, Issue: 22, 190 - 201, 31.12.2014

Ulaş Başar Gezgin , Valerie Clarissa Ann Dev

https://doi.org/10.31123/akil.441973

Abstract

Can individual differences in body dissatisfaction be predicted? What would those predictors be?

This study investigated whether media consumption, self-esteem, and Body Mass Index (BMI)

were predictors of body dissatisfaction. The sample constituted of 149 female college students

from 4 universities in Malaysia. To answer the question of the study, participants’ height and

weight were collected along with their answers to Media Consumption Scale, the Rosenberg’s

Self-Esteem Scale, and Body Esteem for Adolescents and Adults. A few analyses such as the

independent samples t-test, One-way ANOVA, Pearson’s Correlation and Multiple Regression

were conducted on the data. Results of the study indicated that self-esteem and BMI could predict

body dissatisfaction in college women. However, the study indicated that media consumption did

not. The findings were discussed with regard to relevant theories such as the self-discrepancy

theory, social comparison theory, and objectification theory.

Keywords

Psychology of Communication, Media Psychology, Body Satisfaction, Body Mass Index and Self

References

• Allison, David B. and Baskin, Monica L. (2009). Handbook of Assessment Methods For Eating Behaviors And Weight-Related Problems: Measures, Theory, and Research. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
• Aubrey, Jennifer Stevens (2006). “Exposure to sexually objectifying media and body self-perceptions among college women: An examination of the selective exposure hypothesis and the role of moderating variables”, Sex Roles. Vol.55: 159-172.
• Barlett, Christopher P., Vowels, Christopher L. and Saucier, Donald A. (2008). “Meta analysis of the effects of media on men’s body-image concerns”, Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology. Vol.27: 279-310. Buss, David M. (2009). “The great struggles of life: Darwin and the emergence of evolutionary psychology,” American Psychologist. Vol.64: 140-148.
• Calado, Maria, Lameiras, Maria, Sepulveda, Ana R., Rodriguez, Yolanda and Carrera, Maria V. (2011). “The association between exposure to mass media and body dissatisfaction among Spanish adolescents”, Women’s Health Issues. Vol.21: 390-399.
• Cohen, Sara B. (2006). “Media exposure and its subsequent effects on body dissatisfaction, disordered eating, and drive for thinness: A review of the current research”, Mind Matters: The Wesleyan Journal of Psychology. Vol.1: 57-71.
• De Man, A. F. and Gutiérrez, B. I. (2002). “The relationship between level of self-esteem and suicidal ideation with stability of self-esteem as moderator,” Canadian Journal of Behavioral Science. Vol.34: 235-238. Dohnt, Hayley and Tiggemann, Marika (2006). “The contribution of peer and media influences to the development of body satisfaction and self-esteem in young girls: A prospective study”, Developmental Psychology. Vol.42: 929-936.
• Ferguson, Christopher J., Winegard, Benjamin, and Winegard, Bo M. (2011). “Who is the fairest one of all? How evolution guides peer and media influences on female body dissatisfaction”, Review of General Psychology. Vol.15: 11-28.
• Festinger, Leon (1954). “A theory of social comparison processes”, Human Relations. Vol.7: 117-140.
• Frederick, David A., Forbes, Gordon B., Grigorian, Kristina E., and Jarcho, Johanna M. (2007). “The UCLA body project I: Gender and ethnic differences in self-objectification and body satisfaction among 2,206 undergraduates”, Sex Roles. Vol.57: 317-327.
• Fredrickson, Barbara L., and Roberts, Tommi-Ann (1997). “Objectification theory: Towards understanding women’s lived experiences and mental health risks”, Psychology of Women Quarterly. Vol.21: 173-206.
• Greenberger, Ellen, Chen, Chuansheng, Dmitrieva, Julia and Farruggia, Susan P. (2003). “Item-wording and dimensionality of the Rosenberg self-esteem scale: Do they matter?” Personality and Individual Differences. Vol.35: 1241-1254.
• Groesz, Lisa M., Levine, Michael P. and Murnen, Sarah K. (2002). “The effect of experimental presentation of thin media images on body satisfaction: A meta-analytic review”, International Journal of Eating Disorders. Vol.31: 1-16.
• Gudjonsson, Gisli H. and Sigurdsson, Jon Fridrik (2003). “The relationship of compliance with coping strategies and self-esteem”, European Journal of Psychological Assessment. Vol.19: 117-123.
• Hatoum, Ida Jodette and Belle, Deborah (2004). “Mags and abs: Media consumption and bodily concerns in men”, Sex Roles. Vol.51: 397-407.
• Higgins, E. Tory (1987). “Self-discrepancy: A theory relating self and affect”, Psychological Review. Vol.94: 319-340.
• Hobza, Cody L., Walker, Karen E., Yakushko, Oksana and Peugh, James L. (2007). “What about men? Social comparison and the effects of media images on body and self-esteem”, Psychology of Men and Masculinity. Vol.8: 161-172.
• Jameca, Woody Falconer and Neville, Helen A. (2000). “African American college women’s body image: An examination of body mass, African self-consciousness and skin color satisfaction”, Psychology of Women Quarterly. Vol.24: 236-243.
• Kim, Jung-Hwan and Lennon, Sharron J. (2007). “Mass media, self-esteem, body image, and eating disorder tendencies”, Clothing and Textiles Research Journal. Vol.25: 3-23.
• Laus, Maria F., Braga Costa, Telma M. and Almeida, Sebastiao S. (2011). “Body image dissatisfaction and its relationship with physical activity and body mass index in Brazilian adolescents”, Jornal Brasileiro de Psiquiatria. Vol.60: 315-320.
• Liu, William Ming and Iwamoto, Derek Kenji (2006). “Asian American men’s gender conflict: The role of Asian values, self-esteem, and psychological distress”, Psychology of Men and Masculinity. Vol.7: 153-164.
• Lopez, Irene (2008). ““But you don’t look Puerto Rican”: The moderating effect of ethnic identity on the relation between skin color and self-esteem among Puerto Rican women”, Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology. Vol.14: 102-108.
• Marcus, Gary (2008). Kluge: The Haphazard Evolution of the Human Mind. Boston, MA: Houghton-Mifflin. Martin-Albo, Jose, Nunez, Juan L., Navarro, Jose G. and Grijalvo, Fernando (2007). “The Rosenberg Self- Esteem scale: Translation and validation in university students”, The Spanish Journal of Psychology. Vol.10: 458-467.
• Mendelson, Beverley K., Mendelson, Morton J. and White, Donna R. (2001). “Body-esteem scale for adolescents and adults”, Journal of Personality Assessment. Vol.76: 90-106.
• Miller, Evonne and Halberstadt, Jamin (2005). “Media consumption, body image and thin ideals in New Zealand men and women”, New Zealand Journal of Psychology. Vol.34: 189-195.
• Morry, Marian M. and Staska, Sandra L. (2001). “Magazine exposure: Internalization, self-objectification, eating attitudes, and body satisfaction in male and female university students”, Canadian Journal of Behavioral Science. Vol.33: 269-279.
• “National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) (2012) Calculate your Body Mass Index.” (2012). http://www. nhlbisupport.com/bmi/. Access Date: 12.03.2012.
• Ng, Cheng Yee (2007) “Expert: One in 10 young girls are prone to eating disorders.” The Star. 24.06.2007.
• Ogden, Jane and Mundray, Kate (1996). “The effect of the media on body satisfaction: The role of gender and size”, European Eating Disorders Review. Vol.4: 171-182.
• Petrie, T.A., Rogers, R., and Diehl, N. (1996). “Development and validation of the revised Beliefs About Attractiveness Scale”, Paper presented at the 104th Annual Convention of the American Psychological Association, Toronto, Ontorio, Canada.
• Posavac, Steven S., and Posavac, Heidi D. (2002). “Predictors of women’s concern with body weight: The roles of perceived self-media ideal discrepancies and self-esteem”, Eating Disorders. Vol.10: 153-160.
• Rosenberg, Morris (1965). Society and the Adolescent Self-image. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. Schooler, Deborah and Trinh, Sarah (2011). “Longitudinal associations between television viewing patterns and adolescent body satisfaction”, Body Image. Vol.8: 34-42.
• Schwarz, Donna J., Phares, Vicky, Tanleff-Dunn, Stacey and Thompson, J. Kevin (1999). “Body image, psychological functioning, and parental feedback regarding physical appearance”, International Journal of Eating Disorders. Vol.25: 339-343.
• Sheldon, Pavica (2010). “Pressure to be perfect: Influences on college students’ body esteem”, Southern Communication Journal. Vol.75: 277-298.
• Stice, Eric and Shaw, Heather E. (1994). “Adverse effects of the media portrayed thin-ideal on women and linkages to bulimic symptomatology”, Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology. Vol.13: 288 – 308.
• Swami, Viren, Taylor, Rosanne and Carvalho, Christine (2011). “Body dissatisfaction assessed by the photographic figure rating, scale is associated with sociocultural, personality, and media influences”, Scandinavian Journal of Psychology. Vol.52: 57-63.
• Tan, Shiow Chin (2011) “Going into 2011.” The Star. 02.01.2011.
• Thogersen-Ntoumani, Cecilie, Ntoumani, Nikos, Cumming, Jennifer, Bartholomew, Kimberley J. and Pearce, Gemma (2011). “Can self-esteem protect against the deleterious consequences of self-objectification for mood and body satisfaction in physically active female university students?” Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology. Vol.33: 289-307.
• Tucci, Sonia and Peters, Jennifer (2008). “Media influences on body satisfaction in female students”, Psicotherma. Vol.20: 521-524.
• Vartanian, Lesa Rea, Giant, Carrie and Passino, Rhonda (2001). “Ally McBeal vs. Arnold Schwarzengger: Comparing mass media, interpersonal feedback and gender with body thinness and muscularity”, Social Behavior and Personality. Vol.29: 711-724.
• Weaver, Angela D. and Byers, E. Sandra (2006). “The relationship among body image, body mass index, exercise, and sexual functioning in heterosexual women”, Psychology of Women Quarterly. Vol.30: 333-339.
• Zikmund, William G. (1997) Business Research Methods (5th ed.) Florida: The Dryden Press.