A Positive Body Image

Paper Summary:

The paper reveals that African-American adolescent girls have a more positive body image than white adolescent girls. The paper attributes this to the media, including film and advertising, that portrays African-American women differently than white women. The paper also notes that African-American girls may have closer family structures and better relationships with their mothers that may positively affect a girl's view of her own body.

From the Paper:

"Previous studies examining the body image of adolescent girls have established a number of ideas about how perceived body image effects the actions and life choices of those girls. Some report body image as a factor in sexual activity (Rosenthal, Smith, & de Visser 319). Others see the media and advertising as playing a large role in the shaping how girls feel about their bodies (Hylmo; Baker). Finally, healthy attitudes from parents and other factors related to early home life also seem to play a part ("Girls' Body" 51)."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Baker, Christina N. "Images of Women's Sexuality in Advertisements: A Content analysis of African American- and White-Oriented Women's and Men's Magazines." Sex Roles: A Journal of Research 52.1-2 (2005): 13-15.
• "Girls' Body Images Depend on Moms." Family Practice News 36.2 (2006): 51.
• Hylmo, Annika. "Girls on Film: An Examination of Gendered Vocational Socialization Messages Found in Montion Pictures Targeting Teenage Girls." Western Journal of Communication 70.3 (2006): 167-85.
• Rosenthal, Doreen A., Anthony M. A. Smith, and Richard de Visser. "Personal and Social Factors Influencing Age at First Sexual Intercourse." Archives of Sexual Behavior 28.4 (1999): 319.

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