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Franziska Widmer Howald1, Marcel Schär Gmelch2, Marie Peterseil3
11 Gesundheitsförderung Schweiz, Bern und Lausanne.
Praxis
|July 5, 2018
Summary
Adolescents with positive body image report better mental health and are less influenced by media. Developing targeted social media campaigns can enhance adolescent well-being and mental health.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Adolescent Health
- Media Studies
Background:
- Positive body image is linked to greater contentment, critical reflection of societal beauty standards, self-care, and depression resilience.
- Adolescence is a crucial developmental stage for body image formation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between body image and mental health in adolescents.
- To examine the impact of media influence on adolescent body image and mental health.
Main Methods:
- Survey of 1023 adolescents aged 13-16 years.
- Analysis of data from both linguistic regions of the country.
Main Results:
- A significant positive correlation was found between positive body image and mental health.
- A significant negative correlation was observed between positive body image and media influence.
- These correlations were consistent across both analyzed language regions.
Conclusions:
- Promoting positive body image is crucial for adolescent mental health.
- Interventions should address media literacy and critical consumption of beauty ideals.
- Future strategies should include gender-specific and target-group-focused communication, leveraging social media to bolster adolescent mental health.