Lillian Donovan

UWRT 1102
Mr. Padgett
Due: March 15, 2015

Thesis: While many may not recognize a direct link, social media is becoming an
apparent problem in relation to teens with eating disorders.
Eric Stice and Heather E. Shaw (1994). Adverse Effects of the Media Portrayed Thin-Ideal on Women and
Linkages to Bulimic Symptomatology. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology: Vol. 13, No. 3, pp. 288308.
It is often hard to point out a direct cause to every problem. While trying to
argue for my topic I felt as though this journal had many specific examples that
would allow more people to relate too. For instance it discusses one specific study
that was done using a group of girls that were presented with pictures of women
ranging from anorexic models to non-models. After conducting the test it was shown
that women almost always felt a sense of insecurity, guilt, and body dissatisfaction.
Being able to reference examples such as these, I think will ultimately strengthen my
argument and provide the public with a more clear correlation.
"Social Media's Potential Influence on Eating Disorders" Elements Behavioral Health. 2015. Elements
Behavioral Health . 15 Mar. 2015 <http://www.elementsbehavioralhealth.com/eating-disorders/socialmedias-potential-influence-eating-disorders/>.
This article would be especially beneficial to my research because it goes
more into depth on what types of media specifically have been known to cause the
most reaction. The author gives examples of social medias such as Tumblr and
Pinterest that glorify the idea of thinspiration. Websites such as these have excess
amounts of pictures with the ideal skinny women with quotes that otherwise make
you feel bad about yourself, along with links to diet websites. She discusses that 80%
of all the teenagers routinely use social media. Thats 80% percent that are
constantly faced with overbearing ideals about what perfect looks like. This is an
important source to back up the angle that the media is more present than ever and
the majority of viewers teenagers and young adults.

"Body Image and Nutrition" Teen Health and the Media. Teen Futures Media Network.
<http://depts.washington.edu/thmedia/>.
I chose this next article mainly because it goes into depth on how boys find
themselves affected by social pressures as well. It states that in a study done on fifth
grade boys they were dissatisfied with their bodies after simply watching a music
video by Brittney spears. I think this article was important to include because it
reminds us that boys are just as likely to fall victim to our everyday judgmental

society. Often times we stereotype eating disorders as a girls only topic but the issue
reaches an even broader audience.
Nordqvist, Christian . "What is Anorexia Nervosa?" MNT. 2015. MNT . 15 Mar. 2015
<http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/267432.php>.
I chose this article basically so I had a better understand of what the disorder actually is. We all hear the
term being loosely thrown around but a lot more factors in to the disorder than more people know. This will
be a benefit to my paper because if I am able to provide a more thorough and accurate definition for my
reader than they too will be better informed and can hopefully better understand the severity and risks
associated with it.
Chapman, Cameron. "The History and Evolution of Social Media" Web Design . october 7, 2009. Web
Design . 15 Mar. 2015 <http://www.webdesignerdepot.com/2009/10/the-history-and-evolution-of-socialmedia/>.
This one was an important article because most of the discussion topics in our class
are about technology and what it does. The purpose of the article was to inform the
reader on what social media actually is and where it came from. Like everything else
things are always changing so of course technology follows. Once again if the reader
can better understand what social media is exactly they are more likely to be
proactive and watch out for harmful websites.
University of Haifa. "Facebook users more prone to developing eating disorders, study finds."
ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 7 February 2011.
<www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/02/110207091754.htm>.
I included this source as a part of my paper because of its relation to my topic. It was
able to give information and data based off real girls. I think it is important to my
paper because it gives the reader a better idea of the effects that can occur.
"Media, Body Image, and Eating Disorders | National Eating Disorders Association." Media, Body Image,
and Eating Disorders | National Eating Disorders Association. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2015.
This source proved to be very helpful because it provided me with specific facts pertaining to time spent
watching the television and as well as explaining the media to me. It offered clear examples of people who
are more susceptible to having an eating disorder based off race or gender.
"BulimiaNervosa."Wikipedia.WikimediaFoundation,n.d.Web.13Apr.2015.
Thissourceprovidedmewithanecessarydefinitioninorderformetoinformthereaderaboutthetypesof
eatingdisordersIamdiscussing.