Social comparisons, reflected appraisals, and mass media: The impact of pervasive beauty images on black and white girls' self-concepts

Content analyses and experimental studies often indicate strong, usually ne gative effects of media on the self. In contrast, qualitative work suggests that individuals may exercise considerable influence in selecting, interpr eting and criticizing media content. This literature however, does not adeq uately consider or specify how "interpreted" media content still night affe ct self-concept negatively. Incorporating social comparison and reflected a ppraisal processes, this study shows how media affect self-esteem indirectl y, despite criticism, through beliefs about how others use and are affected by media. In-depth interviews with 60 white and minority girls, complement ed by quantitative measures from a larger study, help to clarify how girls ape affected by prominent images of females pervasive in media. Most girls see the images as unrealistic; many prefer to see "real" girls. White girls despite their criticism, are still harmed by the images because they belie ve that others find the images important and that others in the local cultu re, especially boys, evaluate them on the basis of these images. Minority g irls do not identify with "white" media images, nor believe that significan t others are affected by them; thus their critical interpretations succeed in thwarting negative feelings. The study increases our understanding of me dia effects on the self-concept and suggests that researchers consider how media images may be part of social comparison and reflected appraisal proce sses.