Self-objectification and compliment type: Effects on negative mood

The effects of trait self-objectification and compliment type (Neutral/Character/Appearance) on women's negative mood was examined. One hundred and eighty-five undergraduate women participated in mock appearance evaluations and interviews before completing questionnaires. As in previous research, women high on trait self-objectification displayed substantially greater body shame and appearance anxiety than women low on trait self-objectification. Women high on trait self-objectification who received character or appearance compliments expressed less negative mood than those receiving neutral compliments. A supplementary study (N = 53) suggested that the effect of positive compliments may be due, in part, to the fact that the self-esteem of high trait self-objectified participants was largely contingent on others’ approval. Offering highly trait self-objectified women positive statements concerning either their characters or their appearance temporarily assuages negative mood.     

A naturalistic study of fat talk and its behavioral and affective consequences

Fat talk is a style of verbal expression among young women involving negative self-statements, complaints about physical appearance, and weight management. This research used ecological momentary assessment to examine the impact of naturalistic fat talk experiences on body dissatisfaction, body checking, negative affect, and disordered eating behaviors. We examined trait self-objectification as a moderator. Sixty-five female college students completed a baseline questionnaire and responded to questions when randomly prompted by palm pilot devices for five days. Results indicated fat talk is common and associated with greater body dissatisfaction, body checking, negative affect, and disordered eating behaviors. Fat talk participation was associated with greater body checking than overhearing fat talk. Greater trait self-objectification was associated with greater body dissatisfaction and body checking following fat talk. These results suggest that fat talk negatively impacts the cognitions, affect, and behavior of young women and has increased negative effects for women higher in self-objectification.     

Those speedos become them: the role of self-objectification in gay and heterosexual men's body image

Objectification Theory proposes that membership in sexually objectifying Western societies gradually socializes women to adopt an observer's perspective on their physical self. This leads to negative consequences, including body shame and restricted eating behavior. The authors extend this framework to investigate a subgroup of men, namely gay men, who also exist in a subculture that emphasizes and values physical appearance. Study 1 investigated trait differences in self-objectification and body image among gay and heterosexual men. Analyses indicated that gay men scored higher on self-objectification, body shame, body dissatisfaction, and drive for thinness. In Study 2, the authors experimentally manipulated state self-objectification and found that for gay men, increasing state self-objectification resulted in greater body shame and dissatisfaction and more restrained eating. Together, these results offer strong support to Objectification Theory as a useful framework from within which to view the experience of gay men.     

Examining Prospective Mediation Models of Body Surveillance, Trait Anxiety, and Body Dissatisfaction in African American and Caucasian College Women

Within dominant U.S. culture, the feminine body has been positioned as an object to be looked at and sexually gazed upon; thus, females often learn to view themselves from an observer’s perspective and to treat themselves as objects to be looked at (i.e., self-objectification). Self-objectification often results in negative outcomes, such as body dissatisfaction, among Caucasian samples, but the correlates and consequences of self-objectification among African Americans are less clear. Given that this construct may vary considerably across racial/ethnic groups, the current study considers how self-objectification affects both African American and Caucasian college women’s body dissatisfaction. This was assessed via two prospective mediation models that utilized bootstrapping techniques. In the first model, trait anxiety was tested as a mediator of the relation between body surveillance, the behavioral indicator of self-objectification, and body dissatisfaction; in the second model, body surveillance was examined as a mediator of the relation between trait anxiety and body dissatisfaction. Participants at Time 1 were 276 undergraduate women attending a Midwestern university in the U.S.; 97 (35%) described themselves as African American/Black, and 179 as Caucasian non-Hispanic/White; at Time 2, 70 African American females and 156 Caucasian females provided data. At these two time points, separated by about 5?months, participants completed the same set of questionnaires. Results indicated that the first mediation model was not significant for either group, but the second model was significant for the Caucasian women. Results provide some support for the differential effects of self-objectification on women’s body dissatisfaction depending on race/ethnicity.     

Clothes Make a Difference: The Role of Self-Objectification

Objectification Theory contends that women self-objectify as a result of internalizing an observer’s perspective on their physical selves. Self-objectification has been examined as both a stable enduring trait and as a context dependent state. The present study aimed to assess the link between clothing, a neglected area of women’s appearance management, and self-objectification. Participants were 102 South Australian female undergraduate students who completed a questionnaire containing a trait measure of self-objectification, as well as four different scenarios varying in clothing worn and setting depicted, followed by state measures of self-objectification, negative mood, body shame, and body dissatisfaction. It was found that the scenarios involving revealing clothing (bathers) led to greater state self-objectification, body shame, body dissatisfaction and negative mood than the scenarios involving more modest clothing (sweater), especially for heavier women. In addition, the dressing room scenarios led to greater state self-objectification but less negative mood than the public scenarios. It was concluded that clothing represents an important contributor to the body and emotional experience of contemporary young women.     

Self-objectification and well-being in women's daily lives

Laboratory experiments and surveys show that self-objectification increases body shame, disrupts attention, and negatively predicts well-being. Using experience sampling methodology, the authors investigated self-objectification in the daily lives of 49 female college students. Building on the predictions of objectification theory, they examined associations between internalizing an observer's perspective on the self and psychological well-being, and examined the moderating roles of trait self-esteem and appearance-contingent self-worth. Within-person increases in self-objectification predicted decreased well-being, but this association was moderated by trait self-esteem and trait appearance-contingent self-worth; high self-esteem, highly appearance-contingent participants reported increased well-being when they self-objectified. Furthermore, perceived unattractiveness partially mediated the main effect and the three-way interaction: high self-esteem, highly contingent participants experienced smaller drops in well-being when they self-objectified, in part because they felt less unattractive. These results suggest that in daily life, some women receive a boost from self-objectification, although most women experience decreases in well-being when self-objectifying.     

Body on My Mind: The Lingering Effect of State Self-objectification

Objectification theory explicates a model in which women are socialized to view their own bodies as objects to be evaluated. In the current study, we used a 2 (self-objectification condition: swimsuit versus sweater)?×?2 (gender) factorial design to examine whether body-related thoughts continued after women were removed from a self-objectifying situation. Results showed that, compared to participants in the other three groups, women in the self-objectification condition listed more body-related thoughts during a free response task given after they had re-dressed. The amount of shame experienced during self-objectification mediated the relationship between self-objectification condition and lingering body-related thoughts. This study adds to the understanding of how the process of self-objectification works to maintain women’s focus on their appearance.     

Instagram Use and Self-Objectification: The Roles of Internalization,Comparison, Appearance Commentary,and Feminism

The current study examined potential mediators (i.e., internalization of cultural standards of beauty, engaging in upward and downward appearance comparison, and receiving positive and negative appearance-related commentary), moderators (i.e., feminist beliefs), and moderated mediation of the links between Instagram (an electronic way to share visual images) use and self-objectification and body surveillance among 492 undergraduate women from the Southeast United States. Results revealed that internalization of cultural standards of beauty and engaging in upward appearance comparison uniquely mediated Instagram usage and self-objectification and body surveillance links. Additionally, findings from the moderation analyses indicated that the direct effect of Instagram usage on body surveillance was contingent on feminist beliefs, such that this relationship was only significant among women with lower and moderate feminist beliefs. This finding suggests that higher feminist beliefs play a buffering or protective role whereas lower feminist beliefs play an intensifying role. Implications and future directions are discussed.     

Others as Objects: How Women and Men Perceive the Consequences of Self-Objectification

Although the negative psychological impact of self-objectification is well-documented, whether people generally recognize this impact in other people remains unclear. We hypothesized that due to their relatively limited experience with self-objectification, men are less likely than women to perceive its ramifications. In Study 1a, where 132 U.S. undergraduates were induced to perceive a female target as self-objectifying, women saw more negative emotions in her. Study 1b, using a U.S. online sample (N?=?170), indicated that this difference was not due to participants’ own state of self-objectification. In Study 2, when participants (U.S. online sample, N?=?84) identified with objectified targets, women again reported stronger negative reactions, further supporting our hypothesis. Implications and future directions are discussed.     

The Effect of Thin Ideal Media Images on Women’s Self-Objectification, Mood, and Body Image

Objectification theory (Fredrickson and Roberts, Psychology of Women Quarterly, 21, 173–206, 1997) contends that experiences of sexual objectification socialize women to engage in self-objectification. The present study used an experimental design to examine the effects of media images on self-objectification. A total of 90 Australian undergraduate women aged 18 to 35 were randomly allocated to view magazine advertisements featuring a thin woman, advertisements featuring a thin woman with at least one attractive man, or advertisements in which no people were featured. Participants who viewed advertisements featuring a thin-idealized woman reported greater state self-objectification, weight-related appearance anxiety, negative mood, and body dissatisfaction than participants who viewed product control advertisements. The results demonstrate that self-objectification can be stimulated in women without explicitly focusing attention on their own bodies.     

Disordered eating attitudes and self-objectification among physically active and sedentary female college students

The authors' purpose in this study was to examine objectification theory (B. L. Fredrickson & T. A. Roberts, 1997) among physically active (n=115) and sedentary (n=70) women. The women completed the Self-Objectification Questionnaire (Noll & Fredrickson, 1998), the Body Surveillance and Body Shame subscales of the Objectified Body Consciousness Scale (McKinley & Hyde, 1996), the Appearance Anxiety Scale (Dion, Dion, & J. Keelan, 1990), a flow experiences measure (Tiggemann & Slater, 2001), and the Eating Attitudes Test-26 (Garner, Olmsted, Bohr, & Garfinkel, 1982). Self-objectification directly and indirectly (via body shame and appearance anxiety) predicted disordered eating in both groups of women. Physically active women reported more frequent flow experiences than sedentary women. Women high in self-objectification reported higher levels of body surveillance, body shame, appearance anxiety, and self-reported disordered eating attitudes. Body surveillance was related to disordered eating only among women with high self-objectification. Appearance anxiety was negatively associated with flow experiences among sedentary women. Objectification theory provides a useful framework for understanding factors related to disordered eating attitudes among active and sedentary college women.     

Family influence on disordered eating: The role of body image dissatisfaction

Research has linked an appearance-focused family culture (including parental commentary about weight/size) with increased disordered eating and body image dissatisfaction in daughters. Since body image dissatisfaction is also a risk factor for disordered eating, body image dissatisfaction may contribute to the link between family focus on appearance and disordered eating. This correlational study included a sample of 268 college women who completed the Family Influence Scale, Bulimia Test – Revised, Body Shape Questionnaire, and a series of items about their parents’ comments about their weight/size. Both family appearance focus and daughters’ body image dissatisfaction predicted increased disordered eating in daughters. Additionally, body image dissatisfaction partially mediated the influence of family appearance focus on daughters’ disordered eating. No specific type of parental comments regarding weight/size emerged as a superior predictor of eating disturbance, but encouragement to control weight/size was a stronger predictor of body dissatisfaction than other types of parental comments.     

The UCLA Body Project I: Gender and Ethnic Differences in Self-Objectification and Body Satisfaction Among 2,206 Undergraduates

This study examined whether objectification theory is useful for understanding gender, body mass, and ethnic differences in body satisfaction among 2,206 US undergraduates who completed a body image survey. Women reported lower body satisfaction than men (d?=?.37) and this was true across the majority of the BMI continuum. Very slender men, however, were less satisfied than very slender women who approached the female thin-ideal. Differences in body satisfaction among White, Asian, and Hispanic participants were small to moderate (ds?=?.18 to .45). Consistent with the prediction that self-objectification has particularly negative effects on women who deviate from the slender White ideal, the association between body dissatisfaction and appearance surveillance was strongest for heavier and minority women.     

Self-objectification, habitual body monitoring, and body dissatisfaction in older European American women: exploring age and feminism as moderators

This study examined the influence of feminist attitudes on self-objectification, habitual body monitoring, and body dissatisfaction in middle age and older women. The participants were 138 European American heterosexual women ranging in age from 40 to 87 years old. Consistent with previous research, self-objectification and habitual body monitoring were positively correlated with body dissatisfaction and, self-objectification and habitual body monitoring remained stable across the lifespan. While age did not moderate the relationship between self-objectification and body dissatisfaction, age was found to moderate the relationship between habitual body monitoring and body dissatisfaction such that the relationship was smaller for older women than for middle-aged women. Interestingly, feminist attitudes were not significantly correlated with body dissatisfaction, self-objectification, or habitual body monitoring, and endorsement of feminist attitudes was not found to moderate the relationship between self-objectification or habitual body monitoring and body dissatisfaction. Potential implications for older women are discussed.     

Body Objectification and “Fat Talk”: Effects on Emotion,Motivation, and Cognitive Performance

To evaluate the effects of self-objectification on mood, motivation, and cognitive performance, 80 women either tried on a swimsuit (high objectification) or a sweater (low objectification). In addition, in order to investigate whether “fat talk” exacerbates the negative effects of self-objectification, half of each group overheard a confederate make self-disparaging body comments or neutral comments. Self-objectification, either as an individual difference disposition (trait) or as a situationally induced state, was associated with increased negative feelings, decreased intrinsic motivation, lower self-efficacy, and diminished cognitive functioning. The “fat talk” prime had mixed effects; potential reasons are discussed in detail. Exposure to fat talk was associated with an increase in negative emotion for women in sweaters, but a decrease in negative emotion for women in swimsuits. Fat talk was also associated with improved motivation and cognitive functioning for women low in trait self-objectification but diminished motivation and performance for women high in trait self-objectification.     

Objectification in Fitness Centers: Self-Objectification, Body Dissatisfaction, and Disordered Eating in Aerobic Instructors and Aerobic Participants

This study was designed to investigate self-objectification, its theoretical consequences, and its relationship to reasons for exercise within a fitness center environment. Sixty female aerobic instructors and 97 female aerobic participants, who ranged in age from 18 to 45 years, completed questionnaire measures of self-objectification, reasons for exercise, body dissatisfaction, and disordered eating. Increased self-objectification (and self-surveillance) was related to disordered eating symptomatology, body dissatisfaction, and appearance-related reasons for exercise. Aerobic instructors scored significantly lower on self-objectification, body dissatisfaction, and disordered eating than did aerobic participants, and they exercised more for enjoyment and less for appearance-related reasons. For aerobic participants, location of exercise (inside or outside the fitness center) moderated the relationship between frequency of exercise and self-objectification, such that exercising within fitness centers was associated with relatively higher self-objectification. Higher levels of self-objectification were also related to wearing tighter exercise clothing. These results support the general model of Objectification Theory, and provide practical implications for women who exercise within objectifying environments.     

Accounting for fluctuations in body dissatisfaction

The present study evaluated whether the strength of relationship between contextual cues (presence of company and mood) and state body dissatisfaction varied as a function of individual differences in key trait measures (body shame, body surveillance tendencies, internalization of appearance standards, and trait affect) which have been linked to trait body dissatisfaction. Fifty-five undergraduate women completed a questionnaire containing the trait-based measures and then carried a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) for a 7-day period. The PDA prompted participants six times daily to self-report their current mood and state body dissatisfaction. Multi-level modeling revealed that individual differences in body shame predicted inter-individual variability in the strength of the relationships between presence of company and state body dissatisfaction, and positive mood and state body dissatisfaction. Trait positive affect also explained variance in the positive mood state-body dissatisfaction relationship. The implications of the findings for prevention of body image disturbances are discussed.     

Holding fat stereotypes is associated with lower body dissatisfaction in normal weight Caucasian women who engage in body surveillance

This study examined the moderating effect of body surveillance on the relationship between fat stereotype endorsement and body dissatisfaction in normal weight women. Participants (N = 225) completed online measures of fat stereotyping, body surveillance, body dissatisfaction, and internalized thin ideals. After accounting for thin ideals, body surveillance moderated the relationship between fat stereotypes and body dissatisfaction. Contrary to hypotheses, higher fat stereotype endorsement predicted lower body dissatisfaction in women with higher body surveillance. Conversely, higher fat stereotype endorsement predicted greater body dissatisfaction in women with lower body surveillance. Thus, endorsing fat stereotypes appears protective against body dissatisfaction in normal weight women who extensively engage in body surveillance. For women who hold fat stereotypes and report high body surveillance, we propose that downward appearance comparison may create a contrast between themselves and the people with overweight whom they denigrate, thus improving body dissatisfaction.     

Disordered Eating Attitudes and Self-Objectification Among Physically Active and Sedentary Female College Students

The authors' purpose in this study was to examine objectification theory (B. L. Fredrickson & T. A. Roberts, 1997) among physically active (n = 115) and sedentary (n = 70) women. The women completed the Self-Objectification Questionnaire (Noll & Fredrickson, 1998), the Body Surveillance and Body Shame subscales of the Objectified Body Consciousness Scale (McKinley & Hyde, 1996), the Appearance Anxiety Scale (Dion, Dion, & J. Keelan, 1990), a flow experiences measure (Tiggemann & Slater, 2001), and the Eating Attitudes Test-26 (Garner, Olmsted, Bohr, & Garfinkel, 1982). Self-objectification directly and indirectly (via body shame and appearance anxiety) predicted disordered eating in both groups of women. Physically active women reported more frequent flow experiences than sedentary women. Women high in self-objectification reported higher levels of body surveillance, body shame, appearance anxiety, and self-reported disordered eating attitudes. Body surveillance was related to disordered eating only among women with high self-objectification. Appearance anxiety was negatively associated with flow experiences among sedentary women. Objectification theory provides a useful framework for understanding factors related to disordered eating attitudes among active and sedentary college women.     

Setting for exercise and concerns about body appearance of women who exercise.

The present study examined the association between the sex composition of exercise environment and concerns related to body appearance of women who exercise. A questionnaire concerning social physique anxiety, body dissatisfaction, and attitude toward women-only exercise environment was administered to 81 women who used either the women-only area or the co-ed area in a fitness club. A one-way analysis of variance indicated that those who exercised in a women-only area reported more social physique anxiety and dissatisfaction with body size and favored exercising in areas exclusively reserved for women than women who exercised primarily in co-ed areas. The women-only area served as a protective environment for those who were heavier, anxious about their body appearances, and dissatisfied about their body images. These women also preferred to exercise in an exclusively female setting compared to women who used the co-ed area.