‘Me, my body, and my school’: A qualitative study on young adults’ body image

Rollero, C. (Chiara)
University of Turin - Department of Psychology, Via Verdi 10, Italy, Torino

 

Submission type

Oral only

Scheduled

Room 118, 12-07-2019, 09:00 - 10:30

Keywords

Body image; school; young adults; qualitative methods

Summary

Body image is widely accepted to be a complex and multi-faceted construct and there is considerable evidence linking a positive body image to a wide range of indicators of good physical and psychological health. Sociocultural factors play a key role on the development of body image. However, research has been focused mainly on peers, parents, and the media. The present study aimed at investigating also the role of school, as one of the major environmental influences on adolescents and young adults. Participants were 24 Italian young adults aged 18 (50% female) attending the high-school. They were in-depth interviewed by one female psychologist with experience in qualitative research. An inductive thematic analysis was carried out and involved line-by-line coding with codes deriving from narratives. Three major themes emerged. First, subjects described the quality of the relationship with their own body (positive, negative, or ambivalent) and its changes over time. Second, they focused on the influence of mass media which foster self-objectification processes and lower body acceptance. Finally, they reasoned about the role of school in de-constructing harmful social influences and in fostering body appreciation. Implications in terms of promoting a positive body image are discussed.

Auteurs