title: Do portrayals of women in action convey another ideal that women with little self-determination feel obligated to live up to? Viewing effects on body image evaluations and eating behaviors.
abstract: Theoretical and empirical research suggests that valuing the body in terms of its functionality and physical competence (rather than its appearance) may improve women's relationships with their body and food. We tested this proposition by investigating women's responses to contrasting portrayals of the female body as a function of viewers' general motivation (SD: self-determined vs NSD: non self-determined). A sample of undergraduate women (N = 91) was randomly assigned to view a "body-as-process" video, a "body-as-object" video, and a neutral video. Afterwards, participants completed measures of appearance and competence self-appraisals and were then offered three varieties of chocolate bars to sample and evaluate. Their actual intake (g) along with motives to exert self-control (identified vs introjected) were assessed. Negative viewing effects were obtained for both the "body-as-process" and the "body-as-object" videos and these effects were exacerbated by participants' motivation. Women with a NSD motivation evaluated their appearance and competence more negatively post-exposure. They also endorsed more guilt-related reasons (introjected motives) to exert control over their consumption of chocolate which predicted diminished intake. These findings suggest that portrayals of female athleticism and physical competence may represent another ideal that women with a NSD motivation feel obligated to live up to.
authors.affiliation: School of Psychology, University of Ottawa, 136 Jean-Jacques Lussier St., Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, Canada. Electronic address: lmask@ubishops.ca.
authors.forename: Lisa
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Mask
authors.affiliation: School of Psychology, University of Ottawa, 136 Jean-Jacques Lussier St., Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, Canada.
authors.forename: Céline M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Blanchard
authors.affiliation: School of Psychology, University of Ottawa, 136 Jean-Jacques Lussier St., Ottawa, ON K1N 6N5, Canada.
authors.forename: Amanda
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Baker
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000329:Advertising; D001828:Body Image; D002099:Cacao / Q000009:adverse effects; D002182:Candy / Q000009:adverse effects; D002149:Energy Intake; D005260:Female; D006040:Goals; D006801:Humans; D008019:Life Style; D008960:Models, Psychological; D009043:Motor Activity; D018673:Nutrition Policy; D009864:Ontario; D010349:Patient Compliance; D012649:Self Concept; D013334:Students; D014495:Universities; D014741:Video Recording; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Body image; Chocolate; Eating behaviors; Media; Self-determination