Skip to main content Accessibility help

We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.

Close cookie message
×
Hostname: page-component-76fb5796d-dfsvx Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-29T03:12:25.245Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Chapter 7 - Defining Beauty and Cultural Pride

from Section II - The Journey Toward Positive Body Image

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 February 2021

Nichole Wood-Barcalow ,
Tracy Tylka  and
Casey Judge
Nichole Wood-Barcalow
Affiliation:
Chalmers P. Wylie VA Ambulatory Care Center, Columbus, Ohio
Tracy Tylka
Affiliation:
Ohio State University
Casey Judge
Affiliation:
Ohio State University
Get access

Summary

Media often portray an extremely narrow depiction of beauty. For example, in Western media, women are often lean, toned, young, and busty; men are often lean, fit, muscular, and tall – and they both are often clothed in the latest fashions with body hair removed or at least groomed, white or light skin tone that is blemish free, and hair styled perfectly [1–2, see also Chapter 4]. Media equate beauty with what is considered attractive in a particular culture, which is influenced by the “dominant appearance ideals” of those who hold power and influence [3–5]. Having appearance-related features that are inconsistent with these ideals may become a source of body anxiety and shame, unless these narrow beauty ideals are challenged.

Type
Chapter
Information
Positive Body Image Workbook
A Clinical and Self-Improvement Guide
 , pp. 107 - 117
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2021

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Buote, V. M., Wilson, A. E., Strahan, E. J., et al. Setting the bar: Divergent sociocultural norms for women’s and men’s ideal appearance in real-world contexts. Body Image 2011; 8: 322–34.Google Scholar
Tylka, T. L.. Broad conceptualization of beauty. In: Tylka, T. L. and Piran, N. eds. Handbook of Positive Body Image: Constructs, Protective Factors, and Interventions. New York: Oxford University Press, 2019: 52–7.Google Scholar
Kuo, R.. Four ways our socially accepted beauty ideals are racist. Everyday Feminism 2017. Retrieved from: https://everydayfeminism.com/2017/05/beauty-ideals-racist/ [last accessed July 11, 2020]"> [last accessed July 11, 2020].+[last+accessed+July+11,+2020].>Google Scholar
Greenwood, D. N. and Dal Cin, S.. Ethnicity and body consciousness: Black and White American women’s negotiations of media ideals and others’ approval. Psychol Pop Media Cult 2012; 1: 220–35.Google Scholar
Wolf, N.. The Beauty Myth: How Images of Beauty are Used Against Women. London: Chatto & Windus, 1990.Google Scholar
Tylka, T. L. and Iannantuono, A. C.. Perceiving beauty in all women: Psychometric evaluation of the Broad Conceptualization of Beauty Scale. Body Image 2016; 17: 67–81.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Calogero, R. M., Tylka, T. L., Donnelly, L. C., et al. Trappings of femininity: A test of the “beauty as currency” hypothesis in shaping college women’s gender activism. Body Image 2017; 21: 66–70.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Calogero, R. M., Borroughs, M., and Thompson, J. K.. The impact of Western beauty ideals on the lives of women and men: A sociocultural perspective. In Swami, V. and Furnham, A. eds. Body Beautiful: Evolutionary and Sociocultural Perspectives. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2007: 259–98.Google Scholar
Holmqvist, K. and Frisén, A.. “I bet they aren’t that perfect in reality”: Appearance ideals viewed from the perspective of adolescents with a positive body image. Body Image 2012; 9: 388–95.Google Scholar
Parker, S., Nichter, M., Nichter, M., et al. Body image and weight concerns among African American and White adolescent females: Differences that make a difference. Hum Organ 1995; 54: 103–14.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McHugh, T. F., Coppola, A. M., and Sabiston, C. M.. “I’m thankful for being Native and my body is part of that”: The body pride experiences of young Aboriginal women in Canada. Body Image 2014; 11: 318–27.Google Scholar
Wood-Barcalow, N. L., Tylka, T. L., and Augustus-Horvath, C. L.. “But I like My Body”: Positive body image characteristics and a holistic model for young-adult women. Body Image 2010; 7: 106–16.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bailey, K. A., Gammage, K. L., van Ingen, C., et al. “It’s all about acceptance”: A qualitative study exploring a model of positive body image for people with spinal cord injury. Body Image 2015; 15: 24–34.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Homan, K.. Athletic-ideal and thin-ideal internalization as prospective predictors of body dissatisfaction, dieting, and compulsive exercise. Body Image 2010; 7: 240–5.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Thompson, J. K. and Stice, E.. Thin-ideal internalization: Mounting evidence for a new risk factor for body-image disturbance and eating pathology. Curr Dir Psychol Sci 2001; 10: 181–3.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Becker, C. B. and Stice, E.. From efficacy to effectiveness to broad implementation: Evolution of the Body Project. J Consult Clin Psychol 2017; 85: 767–82.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Alleva, J. M., Tylka, T. L., and Kroon Van Diest, A. M.. The Functionality Appreciation Scale (FAS): Development and psychometric evaluation in US community women and men. Body Image 2017; 23: 28–44.Google Scholar

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure coreplatform@cambridge.org is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×