Stephanie Panossian & Serene Ajour

Ms. Nina Shalhoub

English 204/Section 7
Research outline

Body image and Media

Thesis statement: Although maintaining a fit body is a common goal due to

media, people should know how to maintain a balance between having a

healthy body and a beautiful shape, as losing this balance may cause severe
eating disorders, and media should enhance peoples self-image adaptation
and improve their self-perception to restore their confidence.
I. Overview about body image:
A. Why do we look in the mirror and compare ourselves to those in fashion
magazines?
B. The change in the idea of the perfect body image due to the mediadriven society
C. Differences found in the body image from 20 years ago till now due to
media
II. Media and body image:
A. Barbie Image and cartoon characters:
1. Effect of Barbie images and cartoon characters on children
and thus the coming generation
2. Increase in number of plastic surgeries in men and women
B. Use of protein bars and increase in the number of protein injections
1. Are protein bars good or bad?
2. How protein injections affected the hormonal status and
ultimately the body shape of men and women?
C. Negative effects of media on body image:
1. Self-perception distortion, decrease in body satisfaction and
self-esteem leading to eating disorders in men and women
(dont put causes)

III. Causes and effects of eating disorders:

A. Anorexia and Bulimia:
1. Causes (Environmental circumstances due to media driven
culture)
2. Effects
3. Statistics
IV. Minimizing effects of media on body image:
.
A. Media should find new ways to decrease the negative effects it has
on many lives:
1. Increase the number of TV programs informing people how to
live a healthy life and spread the word through media.
2. Launch awareness campaigns which aim to clarify that selfesteem should depend mainly on achievements rather than
appearances
3. Launch awareness campaigns that broaden ones perspective
about health and beauty
4. Reduce the use of super thin models as a demonstration for
advertising and decreasing their continuous exposure
5. Media should report a blog that addresses the importance
mothers educating their children thus the upcoming
generation about the real definition of beauty
6. Frequently sharing the educational sites that discover
alternatives for steroids and protein bars intake
V. Importance of maintaining high self-esteem through maintaining a balance
between having a healthy body and a beautiful shape, enhancing self-image
adaptation, and improve ones self-perception as well as its effect on the
body image of future generations