[Media Influence Our Body Image]

By

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would take this opportunity to thank my research supervisor, family and friends for their support and guidance without which this research would not have been possible

DECLARATION

I, [type your full first names and surname here], declare that the contents of this dissertation/thesis represent my own unaided work, and that the dissertation/thesis has not previously been submitted for academic examination towards any qualification. Furthermore, it represents my own opinions and not necessarily those of the University

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ABSTRACT

In this study we try to explore the concept of body image in a holistic context. The main focus of the research is on female body image and its relation with social media. The research also analyzes many aspects of women figure dissatisfaction and tries to gauge its effect on their respective image in the socitey. Finally the research describes various factors which are responsible for the body image and tries to describe the overall effect of social media on female body image.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTII

DECLARATIONIII

ABSTRACTIV

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION1

Background of the study1

Problem Statement2

Purpose of the study4

Research Question4

Rationale of the study5

Significance of the study6

Summary7

CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE REVIEW8

CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY21

Research Design21

Sampling23

Data Collection tool23

Participants/Form of Data24

CHAPTER 4: RESULTS & DISCUSSION25

Results25

Discussion31

CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION36

Recommendations40

REFERENCES42

BIBLIOGRAPHY59

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

Background of the study

Many men and women today are looking to the media and entertainment industry for the standards of what it means to be beautiful in today's society. Most of us spend a good portion of our everyday lives looking in the mirror, criticizing ourselves, and are repulsed by what we see. We compare ourselves to Jennifer Anniston, Tom Cruise, Paris Hilton, Brad Pitt, and Britney Spears, all of whom in society's eyes define beauty, glamour, and airbrushing. Airbrushing, that clever little concept that is used by magazines universally to make the pretty look perfect. Perfect? What exactly is perfect? Is it the stick-thin women that walk our streets with their bones protruding through their skin? This is the look that has become ever so popular as women and men all over the world starve themselves in order to conform to what they perceive as society's impression of beauty. Our beauty, the perfectionism that we strive for, where does it come from? Is it be photographed and put on a billboards that we drive by everyday or distributed on the magazine covers that we read in our doctors office? Or maybe it might be something a little more personal, something a little more than skin-deep.

According to the Media Dynamics publication, Media Matters, an average adult has a potential daily exposure to approximately 600-625 advertisements in any form. These exposures come from all media mediums; television, radio, newspaper, magazines, and internet. There are advertisements for everything from juice to condoms, fruit snacks to Viagra, Old Navy clothing sales to perfumes and Victoria's Secret. The media exposes viewers to extremes between harmless and persuasive material and highly sensitive and questionable material. What are possible consequences? Who do the advertisers target with their sensitive and questionable material? Why?

Problem Statement

Media has a wide ...