This study investigates the relationship between media consumption and weight control, using data from a nationally representative study on adolescent health to examine differences between younger and older females (N=2,519). No relationship was found between television viewing and weight control for the sample as a whole; however, a negative association was noted for younger girls when the ages were split. There was no significant finding for the relationship between TV hours and negative body image for either age group. Positive relationships were noted for both groups in terms of negative body image and weight control. These results do not support the hypothesis that media use is predictive of weight control behaviors. Though a connection between negative body image and weight control was supported, no link was found between body image and media consumption. These results underscore the need for further research on weight control that can lead to eating disorders. / Department of Sociology

This study investigated the influence of perceptual training on volleyball serve-reception performance. The subjects were ten female high-school volleyball players. Subjects were randomly assigned in equal numbers to a control or an experimental group. Both groups were tested on two occasions, prior to and following a three-week perceptual training intervention. The pre- and post-training testing sessions consisted of a volleyball serve-reception test and a perceptual-motor test that simulated the serve-reception. At the end of the post-training session, a transfer serve-reception test was conducted. The results showed a significant positive relationship between years of experience playing competitive volleyball and performance score obtained in the pre-training serve-reception test. No relationship existed between performance score and starting age. Also, no significant relationships were found between the performance score obtained for the pre-training perceptual-motor test and the amount of competitive playing experience or, starting age. The results of a 2 x 2 (Time x Group) repeated measures MANOVA, incorporating the dependent variables of mean performance score for the serve-reception test and the standard deviation of the movement time elapsed prior to intercepting the ball, indicated that perceptual training was not significantly related to performance on a serve-reception test. Two separate 2 x 2 (Time x Group) repeated measures ANOVAs, analyzing the performance scores obtained for the pre- and post-training perceptual-motor test under two different viewing conditions (long vs. short) did not reveal any differences between the groups for either viewing condition. The transfer serve-reception test also did not reveal any statistically significant differences between the groups. In conclusion, the results indicated that the three-week perceptual training-program used in this study did not lead to significant improvements in volleyball serve-reception performance among adolescent female players. In future research, a motor component should be incorporated in the perceptual training-program to allow for the coupling of perception and action. Alternatively, a perceptual-motor adjustment period could be provided to facilitate the recoupling of perception and action following a perceptual training period. / Graduation date: 1994

The aim of this bachelor thesis has been to investigate what affected the body ideals of teenage girls attending the Swedish upper secondary school and thus, the questions for the investigation were: Who/what “gives” teenage girls their body ideals today and what is considered as an influence of these young teenage girls today with regard to their perception of their own body? The theoretical perspective on the thesis were symbolic interactionism, Gidden's theory on "late"-modernity as well as Ziehe's theory on reflexivity. A quantitative survey were conducted where questionnaires were the starting point. For convenience and simplicity , the author chose to perform the survey on a number of high schools in her vicinity. The headmasters in these schools were contacted and she got the contact infomation for the concerned teachers or the school social pedagogue. After gathering the material, the material compiled and analyzed in SPSS. The participants were 58 teenage girls between 16-18 years old. What gives teenage girls their body ideals today were first and foremost the Internet but this were often combined with body ideals that comes from friends and media. Regarding to what influence how teenage girls look at their body, teenage girls mainly listen to comments of their partner, family and friends. About a quarter of the teenage girls claimed that sporting activities influenced their opinion of her body shape, as well as media and the Internet. Regarding to the experience of being influenced by comments or in comparison to pictures of other women, it were mainly the media and friends that seemed to influence. / Syftet med denna kandidatuppsats har varit att undersöka tonårsflickor upplevelse av vad som påverkade deras kroppsideal och frågeställningarna har således varit: Vilka faktorer är det som ”ger” tonårsflickor sina kroppsideal idag samt vad är det som upplevs påverka tonårsflickor idag, när det gäller hur de ser på sin kropp? Kandidatuppsatsens teroretiska perspektiv var symbolisk interaktionism, Giddens teori om senmodernitet samt Ziehes teori om reflexivitet. En kvantitativ undersökning gjordes där enkäter var utgångspunkten. Av bekvämlighet och för enkelhetens skull valde författaren att genomföra enkäten på ett antal gymnasieskolor i dennes närmiljö. Rektorerna i dessa skolor kontaktades och hon fick av dem kontaktuppgifter till berörda lärare alternativt till skolans socialpedagog. Efter insamling av material sammanställdes och analyserades detta i SPSS. Deltagarna var 58 tonårsflickor i åldern 16-18 år. Vid analys ledde dessa till slutsatsen för just denna grupp med tonårsflickor, att det som gett dessa deras kroppsideal idag var främst Internet men detta ofta kombinerat med kroppsideal som kommer från vänner och media. Tonårsflickorna i denna undersökning var mer benägna att ta till sig partners, familjens och vännernas kommentarer. Ungefär en fjärdedel av tonårsflickorna i studien uppgav att sportaktivitet kunde ha inverkan på tanken om hennes kroppsform, detta berörde även media och Internet. När det gällde upplevelsen av hur de påverkas av kommentarer eller jämförelse av bilder var det framförallt media och vänner som tonårsflickorna upplevde påverka. Nyckelord: Tonårsflickor, upplevelse av påverkan, kroppsideal, media, utseende, kvantitativ

Thesis (MEd)--University of South Australia, 1996

Thesis (M.S.)--Ohio State University. / Bibliography: leaves 69-72. Available online via OhioLINK's ETD Center

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Dept. of Psychology. University of Missouri--Kansas City, 2006. / "A dissertation in psychology." Advisor: Kathy Goggin. Typescript. Vita. Title from "catalog record" of the print edition Description based on contents viewed Oct. 31, 2007. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 135-151). Online version of the print edition.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Toronto, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 123-132).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Anthropology, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 256-293).

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Western Australia, 2005.

Thesis (M.S.)--Eastern Illinois University, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 61-65).