Radical Psychology
Volume Eight, Issue 1
Full
of
power:
The
relation
between
women's growing social power and the
thin female beauty ideal
Avigail Moor [
*]
Women have made considerable strides in their social standing and power
over the past several decades, breaking through many of the barriers
that have subordinated them over the centuries to male supremacy (Wolf,
1992, 1993). They have entered
positions of authority and power
in government, industry, and academia in unprecedented numbers,
positions that were previously closed to them and occupied almost
solely by men (Kahn, 1984). Yet,
paradoxically, at the very same time,
they have been losing the war on another front, the freedom to live
comfortably in their own natural bodies. In what would appear to be a
direct inverse relationship, the more social power women have gained
over the years, the tinier the body dimensions they have been mandated
to adhere to (Orbach, 1978; Wolf, 1992).
Accordingly, recent decades have witnessed a substantial decrease in
the body size and weight of the female beauty ideal that has shrunk in
size to entirely unrealistic dimensions, removing it further and
further from the natural female physique. Essentially, almost all
cultural representations of women's beauty reflect this unnaturally
slender ideal. From commercials to movie stars, from catalogs to actual
clothing sizes in stores, this image is inescapable (Ahern and
Hetherington, 2006; Becker, 1995;
Bessenoff, 2006; Engeln-Maddox, 2006;
Fredrickson and Roberts,
1997; Orbach, 1978). Today's fashion
models
are considerably thinner than their counterparts of just a decade ago,
weighing over twenty percent less, and looking increasingly less like
actual grown women (Wolf, 1992). What's
more, this ultra-thin female
beauty ideal has been repeatedly tied to the serious rise in the
incidence of eating disorders among women and girls, as well as the
steady decrease in age of onset (Bradford and Petrie, 2008;
Striegel-Moore and
Bulik, 2007). It has also been shown to negatively
impact women and girls' body image and self esteem (Fredrickson and
Roberts, 1997; Wolf, 1992).
Yet little attention has been paid to the socio-psychological origins
of this beauty ideal. Why has contemporary culture made this image the
one and only standard of female beauty? Why have full-figured women
been banished from prevailing cultural representations, with social
sanctions befalling women of natural body size, at the very time of
growing female emancipation? How are these factors related? Might the
rise in women's social power be the very reason for the cultural demand
for extreme slenderness in women? Several theoretical accounts have
proposed theses along these lines (e.g., Bordo,
1993; Orbach, 1978,
Wolf, 1992), and the present study seeks to
empirically investigate
this hypothesis by examining the meaning that the natural full-figured
female physique carries for both men and women at the present time.
The excessively thin female beauty
ideal
Female beauty is constructed within current Western society almost
exclusively in ultra-slim terms (Ahern and Hetherington, 2006;
Becker, 1995; Bradford and Petrie, 2008;
Engeln-Maddox, 2006;
Fredrickson and Roberts,
1997; Frith, Shaw
and Cheng, 2005; Orbach,
1978, 1994; Striegel-Moore and Bulik,
2007;). Such slim
representations of female beauty pervade almost every form of
expression in contemporary culture (Bessenoff,
2006; Ward, 2003). The
media is saturated with anorectic depictions of very thin female models
in body-revealing clothing that blatantly underscore their super boney
figures. At the same time there is a complete absence of alternative
representations of differing body sizes or shapes, to the point that
exposure to attractive, average-weight models is rare (Engeln-Maddox,
2006; Fister and
Smith, 2004; Frith
et al., 2005; Orbach, 1978,
1994). The excessively thin images are
presented as the epitome of
female beauty, reducing women solely to their slim appearance above all
else (Fredrickson and
Roberts, 1997; Moradi,
Dirks
and
Matteson,
2005).
Constant exposure to the thin media images and other cultural trends
that promote thinness as the sole beauty ideal have been shown to
translate into unyielding social pressure to be thin, resulting in a
constant attack on women's sense of worth and value as they fall short
of the beauty standard (Fredrickson
and
Roberts,
1997; Ward, 2003;
Orbach, 1994; Wolf,
1992). Hence, Western culture's female beauty ideal
of extreme thinness and objectification of the female body is now
recognized as a threat to women's wellbeing. It operates as a core
construct in body dissatisfaction and as a specific risk factor for the
development of eating disorders, (Ahern and Hetherington, 2006;
Striegel-Moore, et al.,
2004; Striegel-Moore
and
Bulik,
2007). The rising incidence of
anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa in girls and women, coinciding
with the decreasing body-size ideal for women, attests to this
connection. There is also considerable evidence that exposure to
attractive, thin female models increases depression, guilt, shame, and
stress among women and girls (Henderson-King and
Henderson-King,
1997; Pinhas et al., 1999).
The realization that such psychological damage affects women precisely
at the time in history when they should be enjoying the psychological
fruits of their social gains clearly necessitates a serious inquiry
into the socio-psychological origins of this paradox. It would seem
that this social process might be related to a collective unfavorable
reaction to the rise in female social power, which might best be
interpreted using the theses set forth by several feminist theorists
(e.g., Chodorow, 1978; 1989; Dinnerstein,
1977/1999, 1987; Orbach,
1978; Orbach and
Eichenbaum, 1995; Wolf, 1992) who have
addressed the
fear of female power from various angles.
Men's reaction to female power
Recent decades have witnessed a puzzling paradox. Just as women have
steadily gained greater equality in most realms of life they have
simultaneously faced an uncompromising attack on their psychological
wellbeing in the form of the ultra-thin beauty ideal. As it appears,
women's pursuit of equal rights has signified a monumental threat to
the male hegemony and a challenge to men's superior power and
domination (Kahn, 1984). The result is
collective unconscious male
anxiety. In this vein, "the cultural fixation on female thinness is not
an obsession about female beauty but rather an obsession about female
obedience" (Wolf, 1992, p.187), and the
fear of women's fat a fear of
women's power (Bordo, 1993; Orbach, 1994). The ideal of
slenderness may have actually come into being to counter these fears.
Hence, the thin beauty ideal is seen along these lines as part of a
backlash against women's growing desire to be treated equally and to
take up more space. It is intended to provide a defense against the
collective male fear of this new reality as it curtails women's quest
for public power and independence by narrowing and circumscribing the
public space they are allowed to take up (Wolf,
1992). In this process,
restrictions are imposed on the physical presence of women and the
anorectic female body is upheld as the ultimate symbol of these
limitations (Bordo, 1993; Orbach, 1994). These visual images of
female
belittlement satisfy the need to squelch women's growing emancipation.
By making the thin beauty ideal's unrealistic standards the primary
determinant of women's value, the thin ideology strips women of their
growing power by eroding their self-confidence and turning them into
their own jailers and torturers (Wolf, 1992).
Early maternal power and its
ramifications
Another similar yet distinct explanation for the co-occurrence of
women's growing social equality and the social demands for their
extreme thinness, as expressed by the thin female beauty ideal, might
be found in the universal early life experience of being mothered
primarily by women, and the psychological ramifications of this reality
for both men and women. Several feminist theorists have described these
early experiences (Benjamin, 1988; Chodorow, 1978; 1989; Dinnerstein,
1977/1999, 1987; Orbach, 1978; Orbach and Eichenbaum, 1995),
viewing
the
child's
engagement
with and separation from the mother as
central to the understanding of the psychology of both men and women.
More specifically, these theorists have linked much of the
psychological development of early life to the dynamics of experiencing
the first deepest bonds of love in the context of a relationship with a
female figure, namely, the mother. As a result of ubiquitous cultural
norms that assign the primary child care responsibilities in early life
to women, mothers thus become the site of the child's first love, but
also disappointment, first joys but also longings (Eichenbaum and
Orbach, 1995). The unconscious meanings and ramifications of
mothers' dominance in these early relations may very well have
long-lasting and far-reaching consequences (Benjamin,
1988; Chodorow,
1978, 1989; Dinnerstein 1977/1999, 1987).
Most relevant to the question at hand are the power dynamics of these
early ties, typified by maternal dominance and utter dependence on the
part of the child. This experience of being completely at mother's
mercy cannot but turn her into an all-powerful entity in the eyes of
the little child. Feelings of helplessness and anxiety, associated
with her almightiness, often ensue (Dinnerstein,
1977/1999, 1987). To
counteract these reactions, the child is driven to minimize mother's
power in every possible way. This might take the form of
rebelliousness, fits of stubbornness, tantrum throwing, and the like.
Being such a powerful need, it likely never completely subsides, even
as the child matures, and instead simply changes its manifestation. In
adulthood it presumably takes the form of minimizing women's worth and
creating a system in which women are subordinated and controlled, so as
to get the magical provider under control. According to Dinnerstein
(1977/1999, 1987), women's necessity in patriarchy
to be the single
source of power in children's lives is the very root of all patriarchal
systems. In other words, men's rule of the world is the result of women
rocking the cradle.
How might this archaic fear of female power be related to the thin
ideal? It is suggested that this fear may actually take on a physical
dimension, such that big-bodied women may awaken these early anxiety
provoking representations. In other words, being a substantial physical
presence, full-figured women may symbolically represent the "huge"
mother of infancy, with all the ambivalence that she evokes.
Accordingly, there would be a need to restrict them in space to defend
against this anxiety, particularly in the context of women’s rising
social power. It is postulated that such defensive needs may indeed be
among the root causes for the current cultural demand for extreme
thinness in women.
In sum, be it the archaic fear of the early maternal rule or plain fear
of losing power and control to women, a thread common to these various
theories is men's need to ward off their anxiety over women's growing
power by finding new ways to restrict them, put them under control, and
reduce them in space to the bare minimum. The present study seeks to
investigate this postulation by examining whether full-figured women do
indeed produce anxiety in men, in contrast to slender women who do not.
Thus, the following hypotheses are tested:
1. Women of full-figures are
presumed to produce anxiety in men. It is therefore hypothesized that
these women will be characterized as threatening and intimidating, in
clear contrast to thin women.
2. Slimness in women minimizes
and resolves these anxieties. It is therefore hypothesized that slender
women, unlike full-figured ones, will be seen as none-threatening,
fragile and vulnerable.
3. Full-figured women will be
viewed as domineering in the context of intimate relations as well,
while the reverse will hold true for slim women.
4. The threat will be
experienced primarily by men in contrast to women.
Method
Participants
Two hundred and forty four subjects, 101 men and 143 women,
participated in the study. They ranged in age from 20 - 60 (mean=33).
Their education ranged from 8-20 (mean= 13.5) years. Seventy-two
percent were married, 18% were single, 2% were widowed and 8% were
divorced. Subjects were recruited individually from the following
sources: college students at Tel Hai College in Northern Israel who
were invited to participate in the study on a voluntary basis, and
employees at various workplaces and organizations in the same part of
the country that were recruited through personal contact.
Procedure
Participants were recruited by announcements made in numerous classes
and various workplace settings and participated in the study on a
completely voluntary basis. The test materials were handed out and
collected by research assistants. Participants were told that the study
measured individual differences in perception and were given verbal as
well as written instructions regarding the procedure. They were
guaranteed anonymity and encouraged to respond as candidly as possible
after being assured that there were no right or wrong answers to any of
the items.
Participants were given a
questionnaire that included demographic questions and two projective
measures. Specifically, they were presented with one of two photos of
women whose weight was varied, and one of two descriptions of a couple
which varied in the relative body sizes of the spouses. They were
instructed to rate the pictured woman on different dimensions of
personality and interpersonal traits and the couples' power dynamics.
The size of the target women in both the photo and the couple
description remained consistent for each subject, such that subjects
who viewed the photo of the slender woman also received the description
in which the woman was the slim partner and the same held true for the
full-figured woman. Subjects completed the ratings of the pictured
woman before rating the vignettes.
Measures
Two separate, yet complimentary, projective measures were employed to
tap into the unconscious processes under study. To assess the
perception of and emotional responses to full-figured women in
comparison to the thin type, subjects were presented with a photograph
of a woman, either full-figured or slender, and were asked to assign
her personality characteristics out of a predetermined list. The women
in the two pictures looked remarkably alike, with the exception of
their body size; one was pleasantly full-figured (not fat) while the
other was very thin. Other than this difference they were quite alike.
They had similar facial features, both being rather pretty and having
long and full brown hair. Both had a gentle look in their eyes and
displayed a warm smile as they looked directly into the camera. Their
clothing was similarly attractive; each wearing a nice blouse and
fashionable jeans. The photos were chosen based on current cultural
norms of body size for women (e.g.,
Wolf, 1992, Becker,
1995).
Below each picture was a list of 18 personality traits which the
subjects were to assign to the pictured woman based on their judgment
of applicability to her. A number of the traits included in the list
represented anxiety-provoking characteristics such as “intimidating”
and “threatening,” some represented the opposite, non-threatening
characteristics, such as “fragile” and “vulnerable”, several
represented strength such as “strong,” “independent” and “assertive,”
the rest were benign and served as filler items. Traits were picked
based on theoretical expectations (e.g.,
Dinnerstein, 1977/ 1999, 1987;
Orbach, 1978). Subjects were asked
to rate the target woman in
respect to each characteristic on a 5-point scale ranging from 1= not
applicable at all, to 5 = highly applicable. Factor analysis
performed on the 9 traits yielded three factors
explaining 71.4% of the variance. Each of the 9 items had a
loading of at least .77. Factor 1
was labeled "strong". It consisted of
4 items and explained 41.1% of the variance (Eigenvalue 3.69):
- strong (factor loading = .86)
- assertive (factor loading = .85)
- dominant (factor loading = .85)
- independent (factor loading = .82)
Factor 2, labeled "fragile" had
an Eigenvalue of 1.76 and consisted of
3 traits explaining 19.6% of the variance:
- fragile (factor loading = .81)
- vulnerable (factor loading = .79)
- babe (factor loading = .77)
Factor 3, labeled "threatening"
had an Eigenvalue of 1.05 and consisted
of 2 traits, explaining 10.6% of the variance:
- threatening (factor loading = .82)
- intimidating (factor loading = .77)
The second means of assessment consisted of two descriptions of a
couple in which all characteristics were identical except for the
spouses' body sizes. The variation in the body size variable was
intended to tap the interpersonal characteristics within intimate
relations associated with women's differing body sizes and shapes.
The
descriptions read as follows:
Group 1:
Yael and Ido have been married for 10 years. They have two children
aged 8 and 5. Yael is a very thin woman and Ido is rather broad. They
met in college and are currently pleasantly and satisfactorily employed.
Group 2:
Yael and Ido have been married for 10 years. They have two children
aged 8 and 5. Yael is a full-figured woman and Ido is rather thin. They
met in college and are currently pleasantly and satisfactorily employed.
The descriptions were followed by 6 items describing relationship
dynamics and subjects were asked to rate the applicability of each to
the target couple on a five-point scale 1= highly inapplicable 5=
highly applicable. Two of the statements described relations based on
the wife's domination and the husband's anxiety, and were based on
theoretical assumptions (e.g.,
Benjamin,
1988;
Dinnerstein, 1977/1999;
Kahn,
1984;
Wolf, 1992). The other four were
filler items.
Results
A 2 x 2 analysis of variance (body size by gender) was performed on the
three personality dimensions. The results appear in Table 1. Results
indicate that the target woman’s body size yielded a main effect
regarding all traits. On dimensions related to independence and
intimidation, the full-figured woman was rated higher. This pattern was
reversed for the fragility factor on which the thin woman was rated
higher than the full-figured one. Gender also yielded a significant
main effect in respect to the fragility and threatening factors.
To examine the hypothesis that the full-figured female physique carries
a greater threat to men than to women, the body size by gender
interactions was examined for factors 2 and 3. The findings show a
significant interaction between gender and body size in the perception
of the target women as "threatening" and "fragile". Men viewed the full
figured woman as considerably more threatening than did women, and
experienced the slim woman, in a similar fashion, as much more fragile
in comparison to their female counterparts. The interaction between
gender and body size in the ratings of the "strong" personality factor
showed a similar pattern. However, it only approached statistical
significance (p <.10). Table 2 presents the mean scores on each of
the three factors by both men and women.
Table 1. Perception of pictured
women's characteristics as a function
of their body size expressed as ANOVA coefficients
|
Strong
|
Fragile
|
Threatening
|
Body Size
|
47.125**
|
16.435**
|
32.37**
|
Gender
|
2.626
|
12.747**
|
2.886**
|
Body Size by Gender
|
2.272
|
6.875**
|
8.561*
|
* Significant at the .05 level ** Significant at the .00 level
Table 2. Mean ratings of pictured
women
|
Full Figured
Men
|
Slim
Men
|
|
Women
|
Women
|
Threatening
|
3.32
2.13
|
1.79
2.17
|
Fragile
|
2.95
1.94
|
3.73
3.31
|
Strong
|
4.15
3.66
|
2.78
2.95
|
A second 2 x 2 analysis of variance (spouses' body size by gender) was
performed on the marital dynamics. The results appear in Table 3.
Results indicate that the spouses' relative body size yielded a main
effect regarding the power dynamics. When the wife was described as
heavier than her husband she was viewed as domineering the relationship
while her husband was seen as fearing her. This discrepancy was gender
dependant, as indicated by the significant interaction between spouses'
relative body size and gender in respect to both power dynamics. Men
tended considerably more than women to assign greater anxiety to the
slender husband of the full-figured woman who was seen, in turn, as
having more power and control in the relationship than did her husband.
Table 3. Presumption of marital
dynamics as a function of wife and
husband relative sizes expressed as ANOVA coefficients
|
Wife dominates the relationship
|
Husband fearful of wife
|
Spouses' relative body size
|
7.15**
|
3.81*
|
Gender
|
10.16**
|
9.17**
|
Spouses' relative body size by
gender
|
8.21**
|
12.17**
|
* Significant at the .05 level ** Significant at the .00 level
Table 4. Presumption of marital dynamics on the basis of partners' body
size
Presumed marital dynamics
|
Full Figured Woman
|
Slim Woman
|
|
Men
Women
|
Men
Women
|
Wife dominates the relationship
|
4.00 2.88
|
2.71 2.7
|
Husband fearful of wife
|
3.22 1.71
|
2.09 2.03
|
Discussion
The findings indicate that men do indeed attach a threatening meaning
to full figures in women (possibly unconsciously), and that this
anxiety is comparatively absent in relation to slender female
physiques. In all conditions men ascribed menacing attributes to
full-figured women, while viewing slim women in contrast as vulnerable
and fragile. Likewise, they based their inferences of relational power
imbalances solely on the basis of body size differences between the
spouses, viewing fuller wives as domineering their fearful slender
husbands and vice versa. The finding of consistent association of large
female body size with power and control in the minds of men is
consistent with the theoretical postulations that tie full figures in
women to male anxiety and fear (e.g., Bordo,
1993, Dinnerstein, 1977/1999, 1987; Orbach,
1994; Wolf, 1992). Moreover, this
pattern of
findings seems to lend support to the notion that the ideal of slimness
came into being as a defensive response to women's growing social power
(Bordo, 1993; Orbach,
1994; Wolf, 1992). The fact that men's
anxious
reaction to full figured women, as manifested by their perception of
such women as threatening, intimidating, and domineering is alleviated
when the female body is reduced in size seems to demonstrate that very
mechanism. This would appear to be the precise collective male anxiety
that has led to the present social demand for extreme thinness in women
(Wolf, 1992).
The male anxious reaction to female roundness that emerged in this
study also resonates with the postulation that large physiques in women
may constitute a symbolic visual representation of early maternal
power. The fact that body size alone triggered such an uneasy emotional
response appears to convey its substantial meaning. It suggests that
gender disparities in body size may indeed trigger associations of the
tremendous inequality between the early mother's relatively huge and
often overbearing presence and the frighteningly tiny and powerless
stance of the child, much in accordance with Dinnerstein's (1977/1999, 1987) theorizing. The need to shrink
women in size, expressed by
the thin beauty ideal, would thus be logically viewed as a means to
ease this threat by reversing the direction of this imbalance.
Viewing the full female body as a source of intimidation and threat to
the male psyche can help to explain why the social demand for narrowing
women's steps by way of the beauty images of extreme thinness became
particularly urgent as women obtained increasingly greater social
power. For as long as women were subordinated by an oppressive social
order that curtailed their power, the threat of their physical presence
could be averted to a satisfactory degree. However, as these social
mechanisms increasingly lost their effectiveness as a means of keeping
women down, it likely became increasingly difficult to tolerate the
visual representation of their power as manifested in their naturally
round figures. Conversely, the ultra-thin childlike female physique of
the current beauty ideal does not represent the huge almighty mother in
any way. Rather, it signifies the symbolic as well as the literal
narrowing of women's quest for public power and equality, which is
grimly etched on their constrained bodies (Bordo,
1993). Thus, the
threat of women's power is effectively removed in a symbolic yet highly
perceptible and hence greatly reassuring way.
The fact that the ideal of slimness has serious negative mental health
ramifications for women and girls, identified as a specific risk factor
for the development of eating disorders (e.g., Ahern and
Hetherington, 2006; Orbach, 1994; Striegel-Moore, et al., 2004; Striegel-Moore and Bulik,
2007) as well as depression, guilt, shame, and reduced self-esteem
(Henderson-King and
Henderson-King, 1997; Pinhas, et al.,
1999) calls for preventive measures that
may draw on the present findings. If the thin ideal rests, at least in
part, on collective (possibly unconscious) male anxieties, we must
recognize that and intervene on that level. To the degree that men
associate the full figured female body with ambivalent fantasies of
maternal power and female authority, they will likely continue to
demand female slimness in a time of growing female emancipation, unless
awareness of the archaic unconscious motivations is raised. Likewise,
the need to reduce women in space to counteract the increasing and
considerable space they have come to occupy will continue to require
extreme thinness in women unless it is made visible and addressed.
The study is limited by the relatively small sample and comparative
homogeneity. The findings should be replicated with a larger and more
diverse sample. In addition, the exclusive use of photos and vignettes
to tap unconscious processes, while excluding self-report
assessments of consciously felt anxiety towards full-figured women,
limits the ability to make unequivocal statements about the primarily
unconscious nature of the studied phenomenon. This is unfortunate
because possible resistance to the present findings which may stem
precisely from the unconscious nature of these experiences might have
thus been better addressed.
Nonetheless, the findings underscore the importance of comprehensive
consciousness-raising in this regard. If we, as a society, are to
eradicate the ideal of slimness and to overcome the epidemic of eating
disorders and other assaults on women's wellbeing that it produces, we
must attend to all its socio-psychological causes. On a preventive
level, this might take the form of promoting parental symmetry in child
rearing as suggested by Dinnerstein (1977/1999,
1987), Chodorow
(1978), and Benjamin (1988), which should do away with the fear
of
female authority rooted in early childhood. At the same time, there is
an urgent need for a sweeping moderation of the thin ideal through the
confrontation of the fear of female power that appears to underlie it,
as well as an uncompromising insistence on equal rights and respect for
women of all shapes and sizes (Bordo, 1993;
Orbach,
1978;
Wolf, 1992).
It may be an uphill struggle, but it is one that must be won if women
are to be permitted to occupy their fair share of space.
Acknowledgments
I would like to thank my research assistants Sigal Swissa, Rina
Avigdor, and Anat Cohen for their help in carrying out this research.
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Biographical
note:
Avigail Moor is a clinical psychologist and the head of the
Women Studies Program at Tel Hai College, Israel. She is also on the
faculty of the Social Work Program. She specializes in the treatment of
women in general and survivors of sexual violence in particular. Her
present research foci are the psychological effects of the current
female beauty ideal, the aftermath of rape, sexual abuse and sexual
harassment, and social attitudes towards these phenomena.