Rencently I was doing a Psychology project which let me have a dig at those nasty journalists. Here's some extracts...
Eating disorders have become increasingly common over the last 20 years. Several explanations of the causes of eating disorders have been put forward.
The medical model believes infections, genetics, biochemistry and nuero-anatomy to be the causes of eating disorders. Research by Holland et al. (1988) suggested there was some genetic vulnerability to anorexia. Fava et al. (1989) found seratonin and noradrenaline to be related to anorexia, and research into the ventromedial and lateral hypothalamus has shown malfunctions in this area of the brain could also be related to eating disorders. However, a lot of this evidence is correlational and it is unlikely that the causes of eating disorders are purely biological.
The psychodynamic approach offers several psychological explanations. According to Freud, eating disorders could be caused by conflicts in sexual development. This theory fails to account for males or bulimics. Another suggestion is that sufferers of eating disorders come from families that are enmeshed, or in high states of conflict. Bruch (1971) suggested anorexics were caught in a struggle for autonomy.
Both the medical, and the psychodynamic approaches fail to account for the increase in eating disorders over the last 20 years. The behaviourist approach appears to provide and explanation for the increase,in relation to both males and females.
In today’s society, weight loss is considered an achievement. Through operant conditioning, compliments relating to weight loss may positively re-enforce desires to carry on loosing weight.
Leitenberg et al. (1968) suggested anorexia could be caused by classical conditioning. Anorexics associate anxiety with food, and by avoiding food the anxiety is reduced.
The media could be held responsible for causing distorted views on body weight. Thin people are portrayed as happy, desirable and successful, and celebrities who loose weight are often praised for doing so.
The Social Learning Theory says individuals will mimic behaviour they see in society; therefore, they may strive to achieve the unrealistic, and unhealthy body shapes shown in the media. Computers can be used to alter photographs, making models seem thinner than they really are. Kate Moss, Elle MacPherson, Julia Roberts and Cameron Diaz have been calculated as meeting the Body Mass Index physical criteria for anorexia.
Whilst eating disorders have become more common, celebrities and models have become thinner. Twenty years ago, the average model weighed 8% less than the average woman, today this figure has risen to 23%. In the 1950’s Marilyn Monroe was considered beautiful, she was 5’5” and weighed 135 pounds, by contrast, Kate Moss is 5’7” and weighs 95 pounds. Elizabeth Hurley was quoted in Allure magazine as saying “I’ve always thought Marilyn Monroe looked fabulous, but I’d kill myself if I was that fat.”
Through vicarious learning, individuals may mimic the behaviour of celebrities who are praised by the media. For example, Geri Halliwell received a wealth of positive attention following her weight loss. Many of her fans are likely to be teenage girls who may feel they should be as thin as Geri.
Statistics show women are unhappy with their body weight, and feel the need to loose weight. A survey by Glamour magazine stated 61% of respondents were ashamed of their hips, 64% ashamed of their stomachs, and 72% ashamed of their thighs. 30% of women chose an ideal body shape 20% underweight, and 44% chose an ideal body shape 10% underweight.
Orbach (1999) found that 4 years before television was introduced to the island of Fiji, the ideal body weight was considered to by “round, plump and soft”. After 38 months of western soap operas and other similar programs, females in Fiji showed signs of eating disorders. Those who watch television for three or more nights a week were 50% more likely to feel “too big” or “too fat”. Two thirds of females who watched television went on diets, and 15% admitted to vomiting in order to control their weight.
Therefore the media seem perfectly capable of evoking eating disorders. In support of this, a survey by People magazine found that 80% of women felt insecure as a result of images of women in television and film.
Mixed messages come from the media. Only months after criticising Victoria Beckham for being “too thin”, tabloid newspapers criticised Mel C for being “too fat”. Ironically newspapers with headlines such as “Victoria Beckham: Skeletal Spice” also contained articles along the lines of “Drop a dress size by Christmas” A recent article in Psychology Review (Volume 7, issue 4) highlights the trap that the media have now created. “The media appear to be locked into a mechanism of portraying the very images and beliefs that itself criticises.”
So I went away, did some research with a group of 16 year old girls, and guess what I found? Those who had a higher risk of developing an eating disorder, were the ones who wanted to mimic skinny celebrities. I'm well aware of all the other explainations for eating disorders but that doesn't mean to say this one should be ignored, I think it needs to be seriously addressed.
If anyone has any views on this e-mail me.