Perceptions of the healthiest body in a market-integrating indigenous population in Argentina: Fat idealization and gendered generational differences

Relationships between media influence, body image and sociocultural appearance ideals in Latin America: A systematic literature review

The rapidly growing body of research investigating media influence on body image in Latin America has not been previously comprehensively synthesised. We systematically reviewed studies of the relationships between media use/influence, body image, and sociocultural appearance ideals in Latin America (CRD42021254607). We searched PsycINFO/Medline, Pubmed, Web of Science, ERIC, Scopus, ProQuest Dissertations, SciElo, and LILACS for quantitative and qualitative peer-reviewed articles and doctoral theses in English, Spanish, and Portuguese. Research conducted in Latin America, published 1991-2023, measuring a) media use/influence, and b) body image or appearance ideals was included. 68 articles met inclusion criteria, and quality appraisal concluded that most were of medium/high quality. A narrative review found consistent quantitative relationships, stronger in women than men, between media use/internalisation of media ideals and both body dissatisfaction and thinner appearance ideals. In contrast, participants in qualitative studies acknowledged media influence on their body image, but perceived greater influence from family and peers. Limitations included a predominance of cross-sectional research from Brazil and Mexico with adolescents and young adults. Additional longitudinal, experimental, and interventional work from elsewhere in Latin America is needed, recruiting more diverse samples and assessing more culturally salient appearance aspects (e.g., skin tone and hair texture).

Body norms, body image, and media in a market-integrating indigenous population in Argentina: A mixed-methods investigation

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between media, body norms, and body image among the Qom, a market-integrating indigenous population in Argentina that has historically idealized larger body sizes.

METHODS

With men and women (n = 87), we measured frequency of media/technology use through a Likert-type questionnaire. Using the Stunkard Figure Rating Scale, we asked participants to select the most healthy and ideal body size for their gender, as well as their own body size. We calculated body dissatisfaction as the difference between ideal and own body size. We conducted semi-structured interviews to describe the role of media in body norms and body image.

RESULTS

Media exposure was not significantly associated with perceptions of the "healthiest" or most "ideal" body sizes, nor body dissatisfaction. Men and women perceived categorically "middle-range" body sizes as both healthy and ideal, differing from a similar study in 2010, where larger bodies were favored. Interviews revealed that: media is not recognized as affecting body norms and body image, but is conceptually associated with cultural loss (Theme 1); a "dual stigma" of fatness and thinness is perpetuated by peers, family, and healthcare providers (Theme 2); and body acceptance is highly valued (Theme 3).

CONCLUSION

In this context, while some body norms have changed over time, the impact of media on body norms and image may be secondary to influences from individuals' social networks, and may be occluded by norms favoring body acceptance.