Media violence and male body image.

Abstract

Although past research has documented effects of diverse types of media content on male body image, the effects of violent media content remain unexamined. In an experimental study, 97 college-age men were exposed to either violent or nonviolent narratives accompanied by either muscular-ideal or nonmuscular images of men. Exposure to violent narratives predicted lower self-perceived physical attractiveness, greater body anxiety, and greater endorsement of body modification methods, though this last effect was moderated by self-monitoring. Exposure to muscular-ideal images also predicted increased body anxiety and body modification endorsement. No Violence × Muscularity interaction effects were observed. Mediation analyses indicated that the effect of violent narratives on body image was not mediated by activation of stereotypical masculinity, suggesting either direct cognitive links between violence and appearance or some as-yet unidentified process.