Global Context Essay
My Fire Project Issue is not only something that happens locally, this is a nationwide crisis. For example ideas of beauty are commonly shown in the U.S, everywhere you go! The perception of beauty has impacted a variety of individuals. Mainly seen in young women, starting at as young as 9 years old. “Body image becomes a major issue as females go through puberty; girls in midadolescence frequently report being dissatisfied with weight, fearing further weight gain, and being preoccupied with weight loss (Serdar, Kasey L. "Female Body Image and the Mass Media: Perspectives on How Women Internalize the Ideal Beauty Standard.(" Westminstercollege, n.d. Web.). Field et al. (1999) found that 20% of 9-year-olds and over 40 % of 14-year-olds reported wanting to lose weight. In addition, most girls who express a desire to be thinner are within the normal weight range for females their age (Serdar, Kasey L. "Female Body Image and the Mass Media: Perspectives on How Women Internalize the Ideal Beauty Standard." Westminstercollege, n.d. Web.).” Numerous studies have verified that one's subjective evaluation of their own appearance can have a powerful impact on a person's development and psychosocial experiences” (“Westminstercollege, n.d. Web.”) The way one looks at themself through their looking-glass effects the individual tremendously. With the affects of media and trying to keep up with society’s norms, people have formed an ideal image of beauty. Images in the media today project an unrealistic and even dangerous standard of feminine beauty that can have a powerful influence on the way women view themselves.(“Westminstercollege, n.d. Web.”) From the perspective of the mass media, thinness is idealized and expected for women to be considered "attractive." (“Westminstercollege, n.d. Web.”) Images in advertisements, television, and music usually portray the "ideal woman" as tall, white, and thin, with a "tubular" body, and blonde hair .(“Westminstercollege, n.d. Web.”) There are other issues that have arisen from the problem girls generally have with the way they perceive beauty.Numerous studies have verified that one's subjective evaluation of their own appearance can have a powerful impact on a person's development and psychosocial experiences (“Westminstercollege, n.d. Web.”) . Researchers have found that body dissatisfaction is correlated with other forms of psychological impairment. Not surprisingly, disturbed body image is one of the main precursors for disordered eating and dieting in adolescent and young adult girls(“Westminstercollege, n.d. Web.”) The prominence of dieting and maladaptive eating patterns has become an increasingly prevalent concern in adolescent and young adult populations; research has shown that around two-thirds of adolescent females report dieting at some point. Further, studies have shown that body dissatisfaction surpasses actual body mass as the most powerful risk factor for the development of dieting and disordered eating (“Westminstercollege, n.d. Web.”)