Do Women Feel Pressured to be Thin Because of Advertising?

1.         1)  Gender stereotypes portrayed by the media influence women’s view that being thin is better.

                           Thin Women:

§  Confident

§  Conceited

§  Superficial

§  Vain

                           Obese Women:

§  Lazy

§  Insecure

§  Giving

§  Passive

§  Careless

Researchers at The George Washington University found that the heavier a woman is, the lower her salary. Overweight women they studied earned as much as $5,826 less than their normal-weight peers—that is, if they got the job at all (Fat and I know it). This study also found that employers would rather hire a less qualified thin person than a more qualified overweight person because they apply the sloppy-lazy-slow stereotypes to the way she’d do her job.

2.      2) Media portrayal of dieting influences young teenagers feel pressure to diet.

A survey conducted by Sugar magazine, which surveyed over 500 teenage girls between the ages of 12 to 18, found that 51% have dieted, 78% worry about their weight, and 58% worry about their looks all the time. 

3.      3) Media portrayal of beauty products makes women feel pressure to wear makeup.

  Women spend $7 billion a year on makeup.

   Girls as young as 5 start using makeup because of media advertising and influence from     their mothers.

I do believe that media does influence women to be thin.

Fat And I Know It - Stereotypes of Weight and Women. (2012, May 3).sociallythinking. Retrieved April 20, 2014, from http://sociallythinking.wordpress.com/2012/05/03/fat-and-i-know-it-stereotypes-of-weight-and-women/

Female Body Image in the Media - The Pressure to Be Thin in Society. (2009, November 12). Telling It Like It Is. Retrieved April 19, 2014, from http://www.tellinitlikeitis.net/2009/11/female-body-image-in-the-media-the-pressure-to-be-thin-in-society.html

Makeup and Money: The Cost, the Quests and the Holy Grails. (2012, January 23). Makeup and Money: The Cost, the Quests and the Holy Grails. Retrieved April 19, 2014, from http://www.fabulouslybroke.com/2012/01/makeup-and-money-the-cost-the-quests-and-the-holy-grails/