Body Image Essay

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Body Image
Although varying definitions of body image exist, it is most often used to refer to one’s perception of his or her own body. The Australian National Breast Cancer Centre (2005) defined body image as “a person's conception of and feelings about his or her body - its form, size, shape and the way it fits society's norms.” Body image also has an evaluative component, consisting of “descriptive and evaluative beliefs about one's appearance” (Papalia, Olds, & Feldman, 2005), and may also be referred to as body scheme or body perception.
Body image satisfaction has become a popular topic over the years, partly because it made the public aware of disorders, such as, anorexia nervosa, bulimia, and body dysmorphic disorder. Most of these disorders are thought to have their basis in the individual’s dissatisfaction with body image (Michael & Dean, 1989). The perceptions of significant …show more content…

The study showed that body dissatisfaction predicted lower self-esteem and that body satisfaction predicted higher self-esteem. Body image has been studied with self-esteem multiple times but body image and self-efficacy have not frequently been researched together. Only one study has been reported that analysed body image, self-esteem, and self-efficacy together but that study did not determine if there is a relationship between body image, self-esteem, and self-efficacy but it was conducted with adolescents. Steece, Dollette, Phillips, Hossfeld, Matthews, and Taormina (2006) surveyed adolescents with regard to body image, self-esteem, and self-efficacy. The research evaluated the effectiveness of an after school program in increasing body image, self-esteem, and self-efficacy in adolescents. Correlations were not completed to determine if there is a relationship between body image, self-esteem, and

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