Body image in adult women: moving beyond the younger years

Abstract

In spite of copious literature investigating body dissatisfaction and its correlates in adolescents and young adult women, exploration of body image disturbances in adult women remains an underrepresented domain in the literature. Yet, there are many reasons to suspect that body image in adult women both may differ from and possibly be more complex than that of younger women. Adult women face myriad factors influencing body image beyond those delineated in the body image literature on adolescents and young adult women. For instance, aging-related physiological changes shift the female body further away from the thin-young-ideal, which is the societal standard of female beauty. Further, life priorities and psychological factors evolve with age as well. As such, adult women encounter changes that may differentially affect body image across the lifespan. This paper aims to provide an up-to-date review of the current literature on the relationship between body image and associated mental and physical health problems and behaviors in adult women. In addition, we explore factors that may influence body image in adult women. Lastly, we use this review to identify significant gaps in the existing literature with the aim of identifying critical targets for future research.

Body Dissatisfaction and the Relevance of Religiosity: A Focus on Ultra-Orthodox Jews in a Community Study of Adult Women

“…Recently, however, attention has begun to focus on midlife and older women (e.g. Gagne et al 2012;Kilpela et al 2015;McLean et al 2010;Slevec and Tiggemann 2011;Tiggemann 2004). In general, the findings reveal substantial body image disturbances among women in all age categories implying that women's body dissatisfaction may be a stable feature across the life span (e.g.…”

“…While the majority of studies have comprised young female populations (mostly university students), relatively little is known about body dissatisfaction among adult women (post university and across the life span). Indeed, there are many reasons why contributing factors may differ significantly for midlife and older women from those influencing younger age cohorts (Kilpela et al 2015).…”

Growing Older and Staying Positive: Associations Between Diverse Aging Women’s Perceptions of Age and Body Satisfaction

“…Women are more likely than men to experience chronic disease, and changes in the functionality of the body may lower body esteem (Chrisler and Ghiz 1993;Hurd 2000). Women also report concern with cosmetic features, such as hair color and texture and facial skin (Hurd 2000;Kilpela et al 2015). Last, weight is of central concern to many women across the lifespan (Gagne et al 2012), and is a distinct concern for many aging women (Hurd 2000).…”

“…For many older women, body concerns shift from appearance features to aspects of the body associated with maintaining physical function and good health (Hurd 2000), yet various aspects of both appearance and body function remain central to aging women's self-concept (Hurd 2000;Kilpela et al 2015;Pliner et al 1990). Older women may experience a redistribution of body fat, loss of muscle mass, and changes in skin elasticity (Kilpela et al 2015;Tchkonia et al 2010) which may influence perceptions of physical appearance. Women are more likely than men to experience chronic disease, and changes in the functionality of the body may lower body esteem (Chrisler and Ghiz 1993;Hurd 2000).…”

(Un)twisted: talking back to media representations of eating disorders

“…To be sure, work on body image has increasingly recognised how a range of differential factors within the category of 'woman' may moderate or inflect how images of the body are negotiated (including age, ethnicity and existing eating habits) (e.g. Kipela at al, 2015). In addition, feminist work on the body -including that focused on girls -has sought to theorise the body beyond a binary of representation/ materiality (Budgeon, 2003, Frost, 2005, Coleman, 2009.…”