Society’s emphasis on a thin body ideal may intensify an individual’s negative perceptions of fatness. The purpose of the present study was to examine the relationship between sociocultural attitudes toward appearance (awareness and internalization of the female ideal) and anti-fat attitudes among middle-aged Korean women. In addition, the aim was to examine whether the body internalization of female ideals was a mediator in the proposed model. Participants included a sample of 264 middle-aged Korean women who completed a series of measures online. The following information was collected through online questionnaires: awareness and internalization of the female ideal, attitudes toward fat, body weight perception, and demographics. Data were analyzed using correlation analysis, descriptive analysis, factor analysis, and structural equation modeling. The measurement model and the structural model testing provided an acceptable fit to the data, and all proposed pathways in the research model were statistically significant. Awareness of the female ideal was significantly and positively associated with internalization, and it significantly and positively predicted both constructs of anti-fat attitudes. Additionally, awareness of the female ideal was significantly and positively indirectly associated with attitudes toward fat peopledislike and willpower mediated by internalization. Overall, these findings suggest that society’s emphasis on female appearance and a thin body can ultimately result in significant stigmatization of overweight/obese individuals. This study emphasizes the importance of establishing a healthy appearance standard to reduce anti-fat prejudice.

This study was undertaken to examine body image distortion among female adolescents and identify related factors. Raw data from the 14th Korean Youth Health Behavior Survey were used. The proportion of participants exhibiting body image distortion was 39.5%, with the ratio being higher among female students of normal weight as compared to underweight female students. Logistic regression revealed that the risk of having a distorted body image was higher among high school females than in middle school females having lower subjective academic performance and household economic status. In addition, the risk of having a distorted body image was higher for students who drank alcohol when compared to students who did not drink, for the group engaging vigorously in physical activity (exercise) more than three times per week as opposed to the group exercising less than three times per week, and for the group consuming less than one serving of fruit per day as compared to the group consuming more than one serving of fruit per day. Taken together, the results of this study indicate that continuous nutrition education needs to be provided so that adolescents can correctly perceive their body images and form desirable eating habits.

The objective of this study was to develop a fashion therapy program for improving body image and self-esteem among male workers. Accordingly, the demand for fashion therapy programs was examined by conducting a literature review, survey, and in-depth interviews with men working in the Daegu and Gyeongbuk areas. The results are summarized as follows. The fashion therapy program followed a framework of “introduction-development-final” and was 60 minutes in length, for four sessions (one per week). The contents of the program consisted of a study of the participants’ appearance and any concerns they had about their body in Session 1. In Session 2, differences in image perception were examined according to color coding of menswear and personal color. Session 3 comprised understanding what styling is required to supplement men’s body shape and what style is suitable for each participant. The content of Session 4 determined how to build social performance or positive image using nonverbal elements. Overall, this study has great significance in that it has developed a study on fashion therapy program originally applied for psychological treatment with women that has been adapted as a program to help improve positive emotions and social competitiveness of male workers in an office environment.

The study aims to investigate the effects of media and self-image congruity of ideal body image on the dieting and exercising behaviors of Korean and U.S. female college students. This study focuses on the concept of self-image congruity in order to examine how respondents perceive actual and desired self-images compared to an ideal female body image selected by respondents. A self-administered survey was conducted, resulting in 331 total responses (194 from Korean students and 137 from U.S. students). The data were analyzed through descriptive analysis, t-test, exploratory factor analysis, and regression analysis using SPSS 23.0. The findings revealed significant differences between Korean and U.S. female college students. U.S. students were more exposed to body image ideals in the media than Korean students; however, Korean female students valued the information regarding ideal body image conveyed by the media more than U.S. respondents. Among Korean female students, exposure to media messages regarding ideal body image and media importance had significant effects on desired self-image congruity, while these factors were not significant among U.S. students. However, there was a negative effect of media exposure on actual self-image congruity among U.S. respondents only. Additionally, the study uncovered that Korean students manage their body image through dieting behaviors while U.S. respondents manage body image through exercise behaviors (weight training as well as cardiovascular exercise). The study provides further support for self-image congruity, which extends its applications to the body image field.

본 연구는 체육전공 남녀 신입생들을 대상으로 체질량지수(Body mass index; BMI), 신체이미지, 식사태도 및 신체활동량의 차이와 상관관계를 규명하는데 있다. 남녀 체육전공 신입생 595명(남녀: 341 vs. 254)이 본 연구에 참여하였고, 대상자들은 신체이미지(Body sahpe questionnaire; BSQ), 식사태도(Eating attitude test-26; EAT-26), 및 신체활동(International physical activity questionnaires; IPAQ)에 대한 설문지를 작성하였다. 체질량지수에 따라 분류하였을 때 정상체중은 67.2%로 나타났으며, 저체중은 5.4%, 과체중과 비만이 17.8%, 9.6%로 나타났다. 남학생들의 57.7%와 여학생들의 78.7%는 정상체중으로 분류되었다. BSQ 검사 결과 총 대상자 중 불만족의 비율은 48.2%로 나타났으며, 남학생 22.9%와 여학생 82.3%가 불만족으로 나타났다. EAT-26 검사 결과 전체 20.2%가 비정상적인 식사태도를 가지고 있었으며, 남학생과 여학생의 비율은 7.3% vs. 37.4%로 나타났다. 신체활동량 조사 결과 99%의 대상자들이 활동적으로 조사되었다. BMI, BSQ, EAT-26, 그리고 신체활동량은 남녀 간에 통계적으로 유의한 차이를 보였다. 신체이미지와 식사태도는 남녀 대상자 모두에서 유의한 상관관계를 보였으며, 체질량지수는 남자 대상자들에서만 신체이미지와 식사태도와 유의한 상관관계가 있었다. 그러나 신체활동량은 남녀 모두에서 다른 변인들과 상관관계가 없었다. 결론적으로 체육전공 대학생들의 신체불만족과 비정상적인 식사태도의 비율이 높으며, 신체이미지의 불만족이 높을수록 비정상적인 식사태도를 가지고 있는 것으로 조사되었다. 따라서 이에 적합한 교육과 사회적 인식의 전환이 필요할 것으로 사료된다.

This study investigated multidimensional body image, self-esteem, clothing benefits sought, and Body Image After Breast Cancer (BIABC) within surgical subgroups among breast cancer survivors. The study applied the questionnaire survey method and the main research was conducted through an online survey. The respondents included 207 breast cancer survivors between the ages of 30 and 59, each of whom received the Multidimensional Body-Self Relations Questionnaire (MBSRQ). Self-esteem, clothing benefits sought, examination, and demographic variables were measured using a 5-point Likert scale. The main results of this study are outlined below. For clothing benefit sought, six factors were formulated—pursuit of self-expression/social approval, function/health, compensation, femininity, fashion, and camouflage—and BIABC was defined by the four factors of body stigma/vulnerability, transparency, limitation and cancer concern. While MBSRQ and self-esteem did not show a statistically significant difference between groups differentiated by the surgical methods experienced, those who underwent mastectomies scored slightly lower than members of the other groups. Moreover, the reconstruction after mastectomy group showed the highest mean on self-expression/social approval, compensation, femininity and entire clothing benefits sought, followed by the lumpectomy group and mastectomy group. The lumpectomy group was found to have more positive BIABC than the mastectomy group. In particular, the mastectomy group showed a lower body stigma/vulnerability mean than the other groups. This study is meaningful in that it improves our understanding of the body image of breast cancer survivors and provides basic knowledge for developing products and marketing strategies for breast cancer survivors as consumers.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the differences of body compensation image on variations in the shoulder height and width of power shoulder raglan sleeve jacket. Nine samples were examined: 3 variations of the shoulder height and 3 variations of the shoulder width. The data was evaluated by 123 fashion design majors. The results were as follows; as a result of analyzing the body compensation image according to changes in the shoulder height and width of power shoulder raglan sleeve jacket, five factors were selected; the shoulder compensation factor, the bust compensation factor, the waist compensation factor, the arm compensation factor and the neck compensation factor. Among these factors, the shoulder compensation factor is the most important factor. Examining the major effect of the body compensation image based on changes in the shoulder height and width of power shoulder raglan sleeve jacket, it had an independent influence on factors about waist, neck, shoulder and arm compensation except a factor about bust compensation, had an influence on interacting effect of factors about shoulder, bust, waist, arm compensation, and it had no influence on interacting effect of a factor about neck compensation. This shows that the shoulder height has larger effect on neck compensation image than the shoulder width in power shoulder raglan sleeve jacket.

본 연구는 신 중년여성을 연구대상으로 대중매체를 통해서 지각된 외모에 대한 사회문화적 태 도가 개인의 신체이미지와 외모관리행동에 미치는 영향을 분석하였다. 본 연구는 서울 경기에 거주하는 40-50대 중년여성을 대상으로 총168부의 설문지를 분석자료로 사용하였고, 빈도분 석과 요인분석, 다중회귀분석을 이용하였다. 연구결과를 보면 첫째, 외모에 대한 사회문화적 태 도에 대한 요인분석결과 일반적 내재화, 압력, 정보의 3가지 요인으로 분류되었으며, 신체이미 지에 대한 요인분석결과 외모지향, 외모평가, 신체만족도의 3가지 요인이 도출되었고, 외모관리 행동에 대한 요인분석결과는 의복관리, 피부 관리, 체형관리의 3가지 요인으로 분류되었다. 둘째, 외모에 대한 사회문화적 태도가 신체이미지에 미치는 영향을 살펴본 결과 외모지향, 외모 평가, 신체만족도 모두 유의미한 영향을 미치는 것으로 나타났다. 셋째, 외모에 대한 사회문화적 태도가 중년여성들의 외모관리행동에 미치는 영향을 분석한 결 과 의복관리와 체형관리 요인에 유의적인 영향을 미치는 것으로 나타났다.