Kristen Harrison

Television Viewers' Ideal Body Proportions: The Case of the Curvaceously Thin Woman

Dozens of studies have linked ideal-body media exposure to the idealization of a slim female figure, but none have examined the proportions of this figure. College womens and mens exposure to ideal-body images on television was correlated with their perceptions of the ideal female bust, waist, and hip sizes and their approval of surgical body-alteration methods. For women, exposure to ideal-body images on television predicted the choice of a smaller waist and hips, and either a larger bust (for those who perceived themselves to be smaller-busted) or a smaller bust (for those who perceived themselves to be larger-busted). For both women and men, exposure to ideal-body images on television predicted approval of womens use of surgical body-alteration methods such as liposuction and breast augmentation.

Television Viewing, Fat Stereotyping, Body Shape Standards, and Eating Disorder Symptomatology in Grade School Children:

A survey of 303 first- to third-grade children measured relationships between (a) television viewing and interpersonal attraction (IA) to television characters and (b) fat stereotyping, body shape standards, and eating disorder symptomatology. Television viewing predicted an increased tendency among males to stereotype a fat female target and also predicted increased eating disorder symptomatology among participants of both genders. IA to thin television characters was not a consistent predictor of thinness-favoring cognitions and behaviors, but IA to average-weight characters was a significant negative predictor for female participants. Discussion focuses on the need for continued research on the relationship between media exposure, ideal-body stereotype internalization, and eating disorder symptomatology in child populations.

Does interpersonal attraction to thin media personalities promote eating disorders

A study was conducted to examine the link between college womens interpersonal attraction to female media personalities of various body sizes, and several indices of disordered eating symptomatology. Interpersonal attraction to thin television characters and magazine models, operationalized as a combination of liking, feeling similar to, and wanting to be like these individuals, was expected to be positively related to disordered eating symptomatology. The theoretical proposition that attraction to social agents facilitates modeling of these agents’ behavior was proposed to account for the observed relationships. Attraction to thin media personalities predicted 6 of 7 eating disorder indices, even when exposure to thinness‐depicting and ‐promoting (TDP) media was controlled. The argument is advanced that interpersonal attraction thin media personalities is an important element in the relationship between consumption of TDP media and disordered eating, and exerts an influence on disordered eating beyond t...

Variety Versus Timing Gender Differences in College Students' Sexual Expectations as Predicted by Exposure to Sexually Oriented Television

This study examined whether the relationship between exposure to sexually oriented television and sexual expectations differed by gender, controlling for several key variables including characteristics of past or current romantic relationship, perceived reality of television, and the motivation to watch television to learn about the world. The results of a questionnaire completed by 202 (96 males, 106 females) college undergraduates revealed that exposure to sexually oriented television was related in males to an expectation of a broad range of sexual activities in relationships, and in females to the expectation of earlier sex in relationships, even after controlling for key variables. Also, the viewing-television-to-learn motive predicted an expectation of a variety of sexual activities to occur in a relationship for males.

Women’s and Men’s Eating Behavior Following Exposure to Ideal-Body Images and Text:

Two experiments tested the effects of exposure to ideal-body images and text on young adults’ eating behavior. Women viewed slides depicting images of slender female models with no text, with diet- and exercise-related (congruent) text, with irrelevant (incongruent) text, or no slides (control). Men viewed slides depicting images of muscular male models in the same four conditions. Among women with a discrepancy between perceptions of their actual body and the body their same-gender peers believe they ought to have, exposure to images alone and images plus congruent text led to a reduction in the amount eaten in front of female peers. Among men with the same discrepancy, exposure to images alone and images plus congruent text led to an increase in the amount eaten in front of male peers. The distinctions between ideal-body images and text as stimuli, and between male and female eating behaviors as self-presentational strategies, are considered in the discussion.

Communication in the Community of Sport: The Process of Enacting, (Re)Producing, Consuming, and Organizing Sport

The community of sport is a pervasive, influential, complex, and restricted community comprised not only of participants such as coaches, athletes, and referees, but also of spectators at both live and mediated sporting events. Additionally, sports media, amateur and professional sports organizations, sport governing bodies, and fan clubs occupy terrain in the community of sport. We maintain that membership and participation in the community of sport are communicatively accomplished and maintained and that communication functions to constitute and give meaning to the experience of sport. For this reason we assert that the community of sport represents a communicatively rich locale that warrants the attention of communication scholars. Accordingly, we set out to explore the intersection of communication and sport within this chapter. Drawing on literature from the field of communication studies as well as from associated fields we discuss how members in the community of sport communicatively enact, (re)produce, consume, and organize sport. In each of these respective areas we discuss and

Risk Factors for Overweight/Obesity in Preschool Children: An Ecological Approach

BACKGROUND Identification of risk factors is critical to preventing the childhood obesity epidemic. Risk factors that contribute to obesity are multifactorial. However, limited research has focused on identifying obesity risk factors using an ecological approach. METHODS Baseline self-report survey data from the STRONG Kids program were used. The sample consisted of 329 parent-child dyads recruited from childcare programs in east-central Illinois. Child height and weight were measured and converted to age- and sex-specific z-scores using standard growth charts. An ecological model provided the theoretical framework for the selection of 22 previously reported childhood obesity risk factors. Multiple logistic regression analyses were used to identify risk factors. RESULTS Of 22 potential risk factors, three were found to be significantly associated with child overweight/obesity. These included child nighttime sleep duration (χ(2)=8.56; p=0.003), parent BMI (χ(2)=5.62; p=0.01), and parental restrictive feeding for weight control (χ(2)=4.77; p=0.02). Children who slept for 8 hours and less were 2.2 times more likely to be overweight/obese [95% confidence interval (CI): 1.3-3.7), whereas children with an overweight/obese parent were 1.9 times more likely to be overweight/obese (95% CI: 1.12-3.2). Finally, children whose parents used restrictive feeding practices were 1.75 times more likely to be overweight/obese (95% CI: 1.06-2.9). CONCLUSIONS Using an ecological approach, we conclude that childhood obesity prevention efforts may benefit from targeting the key risk factors of child sleep duration, parent BMI, and parental restrictive feeding practices as focus areas for obesity prevention.

Is "Fat Free" Good for Me? A Panel Study of Television Viewing and Children's Nutritional Knowledge and Reasoning

The family diet is influenced by childrens attitudes toward food, which in turn are influenced by television. In a panel study involving 134 children in 1st to 3rd grade, television viewing, nutritional knowledge, and nutritional reasoning were measured 6 weeks apart. Television viewing predicted subsequent decrements in nutritional knowledge and reasoning, but these findings were significant only for foods that tend to be heavily marketed as weight-loss aids. Televisions framing of diet foods may confuse children by equating weight-loss benefits with nutritional benefits.

US Preschoolers' Media Exposure and Dietary Habits: The primacy of television and the limits of parental mediation

A potential barrier to healthy eating in childhood is media marketing of obesogenic foods, yet little research has linked young childrens media and dietary habits. This study reports data from 423 parents and 354 2- to 4-year-old children in the Midwestern United States, from the first wave of a 3-wave prospective panel study. Variables included family demographics, child media exposure, parent mediation of TV, child dietary habits, and child BMI. Controlling demographics and parent BMI, media exposure and parental mediation were unrelated to child BMI. However, TV viewing predicted increased intake of high-energy, low-nutrient (HELN) foods and decreased intake of fruits and vegetables. Restrictive parental mediation reduced some of these relationships, whereas coviewing and instructive mediation increased others. TV viewing continued to predict intake of some HELN foods for the 322 children whose parents limited their daily screen media exposure to 2 hours. Discussion focuses on future research directions and policy implications.

Racial and Gender Differences in the Relationship Between Children’s Television Use and Self-Esteem A Longitudinal Panel Study

A longitudinal panel survey of 396 White and Black preadolescent boys and girls was conducted to assess the long-term effects of television consumption on global self-esteem. The results revealed television exposure, after controlling for age, body satisfaction, and baseline self-esteem, was significantly related to children’s self-esteem. Specifically, television exposure predicted a decrease in self-esteem for White and Black girls and Black boys, and an increase in self-esteem among White boys. The findings are discussed in terms of cultivation theory and social identity theory.