Research Paper on the Effects of Mass Media on the Perfect Body Image

How can you determine what body image should be? The desire for the perfect body has been prevalent throughout society for a vast majority of time. What makes teenage girls feel the need to strive for this “perfect body”? Some have asked, “…a rapidly growing body of research addresses the question of whether body perfect ideals in the mass media are a core risk factor for negative body image, particularly in women” (Dittmar, Helga) My hypothesis is “Does the media influence adolescent girl’s weight concerns and their perceptions of body weight and shape?” The media in many aspects controls the way that people see themselves and the way they do things. So with teenagers striving to look like what they see in the media some of them go through drastic means to achieve these looks. “The role of mass media influences and parental marital status in the onset of eating disorders. In particular, teenagers tend to be the main target of trying to look like this image.” (Irala-Estévez, Martínez-González, Lahortiga, Alonso, Cervera, Gual) Eating disorders is a major medical problem that most teens face. “Among girls, eating disorders symptoms were directly affected by sociocultural influences, in particular media influences”(Rodgers, Paxton, Chabrol). If the media keeps influencing how teenagers see themselves it can not only damage their life but their families. The Health Information Network as done research on diets has shown “Anorexia is the Number one killer of teenage girls and in total more than 90% of those with eating disorders are adolescent young women. In many girls, the problems appear to set in from a very early age and is caused by peer pressure and exposure to media advertising”
Does media have a major influence in the way teens look at themselves? “Media causes body dissatisfactions since they are the ones who define this perfect body.” ( Furnham, Greaves) I will test whether different outlets of media from T.V advertisements and shows, magazines, and

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