The purpose of this study is to further explore the relationship of media exposure to body dissatisfaction and eating disturbance by examining the mediating effects of pressures and internalization as well as the moderating effects of ethnicity and weight. In the current study, the effects of television and magazine exposure were separated. Pressure was operationalized as influences perceived to be exerted by the media. Internalization was operationalized as the incorporation of specific values (conveyed by the media) to the point they become guiding principles. The results regarding media use reveal that women read an average of three magazines and watch four television programs on a regular basis. They spend an average of two hours reading magazines and 12.3 hours watching television programs weekly. The results further reveal that while non-White women weigh more than White women, White women exhibit greater body dissatisfaction, feel more pressure to conform to thin images in media and display greater risk of eating disorder. Thus, ethnicity was found to moderate the effects of internalization, body dissatisfaction, and pressure in relation to magazine exposure. Because Body Mass Index (BMI) was not related to the sociocultural variables, it was not found to moderate the effects of internalization. The relationships to television exposure are negative or non-significant; therefore, magazine exposure is a more pertinent predictor of body dissatisfaction, eating disorder, pressure and indirectly internalization. Likewise, pressure is more salient than internalization revealing, that internalization is not a necessary precursor to women experiencing increased levels of body dissatisfaction and eating disorder. This study adds to our understanding of the relationship of media exposure to body dissatisfaction and eating disturbance by examining the mediating roles of pressures and internalization as well as the moderating roles of ethnicity and weight, as measured by the BMI. The results of this study reveal that body dissatisfaction and eating disturbance must be examined in light of exposure to magazines and the pressure women feel to conform to thin images portrayed in the media. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Communication in partial fulfillment
of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Degree Awarded: Fall Semester, 2007. / Date of Defense: November 2, 2007. / Body Dissatisfaction, Body Image, Eating Disorder, Magazine Exposure, Television Exposure, Mass Media / Includes bibliographical references. / Barry Sapolsky, Professor Directing Dissertation; Joyce Carbonell, Outside Committee Member; Felecia F. Jordan-Jackson, Committee Member; Jay Rayburn, Committee Member; Steve McDowell, Committee Member.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_168996 |
| Contributors | Davis, Kimberly Ann (authoraut), Sapolsky, Barry (professor directing dissertation), Carbonell, Joyce (outside committee member), Jordan-Jackson, Felecia F. (committee member), Rayburn, Jay (committee member), McDowell, Steve (committee member), School of Communication (degree granting department), Florida State University (degree granting institution) |
| Publisher | Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English, English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, text |
| Format | 1 online resource, computer, application/pdf |
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