Professional Development: Body Image Information

33.6 % of adol escents are

concerned about thei r
body i mage
Mission Australia 2012

What is body image?

Body image is defined as a persons percepti ons, thoughts, and
f eel i ngs about hi s or her body (Grogan 2008, p. 3) and includes
ideas about size and shape, skin colour, birthmarks, scars, facial
features, clothing and physical disabilities (KidsMatter 2014).
Adolescence and body image

Adolescence is a time of immense physical, mental and emotional
growth and development. As teenagers shape their sense of self-identity,
they often f i nd themsel ves del i berati ng over thei r i nterests and
personal i ti es, as wel l as thei r soci al rol e and how others see
them (Hall 2011, p. 2). A significant proportion of adolescents report
increased thoughts and feelings about their body image, feeling
pressure to conform to cultural ideals (McCabe & Ricciardelli 2005).

Influences

Young people obtain information and
feedback regarding body image from a
variety of sources. The top three sources
include:
parents
peers
medi a

(McCabe & Ricciardelli 2005, Ricciardelli et al
2000)

Image Source: Magfile.com
Image Source: Daily Mail Australia
In Austral i a, soci o-
cul tural i deal s
endorse thi nness
f or f emal es and a
l ean but muscul ar
body f or mal es
(Of f i ce f or Youth 2009,
p. 7).


It can be difficult to escape these ideals as images promoting
slenderness and muscularity are cast across covers of magazines,
television sets and movie screens.

Unfortunately, whether we realise or not, stereotyping surrounding body
size and shape is prevalent in Australia with slenderness and
muscularity being associ ated wi th happi ness, success,
youthf ul ness, and soci al acceptabi l i ty, whilst being overwei ght i s
l i nked to l azi ness, l ack of wi l l power, and bei ng out of control
(Gorgan 2008, p. 9).

Challenge yourself what are your beliefs and values around body size,
shape and image?
Negative body image

Critical thoughts and feelings about ones own body can lead to a
negative body image (Tiggemann 2005) and for some teenagers this
results in anxi ety, depressi on, di sordered eati ng or body change
behavi ours, and i n extreme cases death (Evans, Rich & Holroyd
2004, Neumark-Sztainer et al 2006, Tiggemann 2005).

In a recent survey (2012) of more than
15,000 young Australians aged 15-19
years old, body image was an
i mportant i ssue of concern wi th
15.3% of respondents extremel y
concerned and 18.3% very
concerned (Mission Australia 2012, p.
14) about their body image.



Image: Magpile.com
Before After
Image Source: izismile.com
Image Source: Wikicommons
Eating disorders



Del oi tte Access
Economi cs esti mates
that there are 913,986
peopl e i n Austral i a wi th
eati ng di sorders i n 2012,
or around 4% of the
popul ati on Butterfly
Foundation 2012a, p. 9








Disordered eating involves regular unhealthy and destructive eating
behaviours such as dieting, compulsive eating or skipping meals and is
the most common indicator of an eating disorder. Eating disorders are
serious and not a life choice, they can be life threatening (NEDC, n.d.).

There is no single clear cause for eating disorders and the development
of body images concerns; it is important to remember that every child
is different and every case of eating disorders has different origins
(ODea 2007, p.22). A combination of individual, cultural and biological
conditions affect body image and disordered eating (ODea 2007).
Warning Signs

Warning signs that a student is suffering from a negative body image or
eating disorder include;
Withdrawal from social events and activities that they used to
enjoy.
A focus on diets, calories, health and particular foods. They might
talk about wanting to be healthier or fitter and become obsessive
about checking the nutritional content of what they are eating.
They might become irritable or anxious around dinnertime. They
may refuse to eat certain foods or whole food groups.
Complaints about the way they look, e.g. Im ugly or Im fat,
or negative comments about their abilities, e.g. Im hopeless
Frequent weight changes or rapid weight loss
Image Source: Heraldsun.com.au
Change in clothing style such as wearing baggy or oversized
clothing

The Butterfly Foundation 2012b
School and policy documents

The Victorian Government recognises that all teachers have a
responsibility to respond when students experience difficulty with their
schooling, so it is imperative that they identify and act on their concerns
to enable early and effective intervention for students (Department of
Education 1999, p. 6). Concerns maybe raised by teachers if they
identify one or more of the warning signs listed above.

The delivery of information about eating disorders has been shown to
glamorise these conditions and teach students how to participate in
harmful behaviours (ODea & Abraham 2000). Schools should therefore
avoid providing extensive information regarding disordered eating and
eating disorders, and instead focus on Primary and Early Intervention
steps, as outlined in the Framework for Student Support Services. A safe
environment where students have opportunities to develop their self-
esteem, sense of self-worth and resilience, and build meaningful
relationships will help them to deal with negative messages they receive
about body image.

If teachers suspect that a student may be suffering from body image
issues, it is essential the situation is monitored and access to
counselling/treatment delivered if required.

Our website outlines a number of programs and resources that can be
used in the classroom for primary and early intervention, and also if the
situation becomes much more serious.
(http://eeh730grouppresentation2014.weebly.com/body-image.html)













References

Daily Mail Australia 2011, photograph, viewed 28 September 2014,
<http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2005586/Lose-
reflection-gain-better-perspective-Nine-women-hate-looking-
mirror-happens-stop.html>


Department of Education 1999, Framework for Student Support Services,
Department of Education, retrieved 11 October 2014, <
http://www.education.vic.gov.au/Documents/about/programs/health/f
wksss.pdf >


Evans, J, Rich, E & Holroyd, R (2004), Disordered eating and
disordered schooling: what schools do to middle class girls, British
Journal of Sociology of Education, vol. 25, no. 2, pp. 123- 142.

Grogan, S 2008, Body Image: Understanding body dissatisfaction in men,
women and children, Routledge, New York, retrieved 20 July 2014, <
(http://reader.eblib.com.au.ezproxy-
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=1410062878&h=8E76680EA0AB29330CBA088F32C5B991C09B0DEB
&s=14841020&ut=484&pg=1&r=img&c=-1&pat=n&cms=-1 >


Hall, H 2011, Understanding Teenage Girls: Culture, Identity and Schooling,
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<http://site.ebrary.com.ezproxy-
m.deakin.edu.au/lib/deakin/docDetail.action?docID=10444487>

Izismile 2011, image, viewed
http://izismile.com/2010/08/11/photoshopped_celebrity_photos_49_p
ics.html


KidsMatter 2014, Body image in primary school children, information
sheet, KidsMatter, retrieved 20 July 2014,
<https://www.kidsmatter.edu.au/sites/default/files/public/BodyImageI
nformationSheet.pdf >

Magpile 2011, photograph, viewed 4 October 2014,
<http://magpile.com/womens-health-magazine-australia/may-11/>


McCabe, M & Ricciardelli L 2005, A prospective study of pressures
from parents, peers, and the media on extreme weight change
behaviours among adolescent boys and girls, Behaviour Research and
Therapy, vol. 43, pp. 653 668.

Mission Australia 2012, Youth Survey, Mission Australia, retrieved 1
August 2014, < https://missionaustralia.com.au/what-we-do-to-help-
new/young-people/understanding-young-people/annual-youth-survey >

National Eating Disorders Collaboration, 2014 Eating disorders in
Australia retrieved 20 August 2014, <http://www.nedc.com.au/eating-
disorders-in-australia >

Neumark-Sztainer, D, Paxton, S, Hannan, P, Haines, J & Story, M 2006,
Does body satisfaction matter? Five-year longitudinal associations
between body satisfaction and health behaviors in adolescent females
and males, Journal of Adolescent Health, vol. 39, pp. 244-251.

ODea, J and Abraham, S 2000, Improving the body image, eating
attitude, and behaviours of young male and female adolescents: a new
educational approach that focuses on self-esteem, International Journal
of Eating Disorders, vol. 28, no. 21, pp. 43-57

Office of Youth 2009, Body image information paper, Australian
Government, retrieved 6 September 2014 <
http://www.youth.gov.au/sites/Youth/bodyImage/Documents/Body_im
age_information_paper.pdf>

Ricciardelli, L, McCabe, M & Banfield, S, 2000, Body image and body
change methods in adolescent boys. Role of parents, friends, and the
media, Journal of Psychosomatic Research, vol. 49, pp. 189 197.

The Butterfly Foundation 2012a, Paying the price: the economic and social
impact of eating disorders in Australia, The Butterfly Foundation, retrieved
1 October 2014 <http://thebutterflyfoundation.org.au/wp-
content/uploads/2012/12/Butterfly_report_Paying-the-Price_Executive-
Summary.pdf>

The Butterfly Foundation 2012b, Body image tips for parents, The
Butterfly Foundation, retrieved 1 October 2014 <
http://thebutterflyfoundation.org.au/wp-
content/uploads/2012/12/Body-Image-Tips-for-Parents.pdf>


Tiggemann, M 2005, Body dissatisfaction and adolescent self-esteem:
prospective findings, Body Image, vol. 2 no. 2, pp. 129-135