OBJECTIFICATION THEORY - TOWARD UNDERSTANDING WOMENS LIVED EXPERIENCES AND MENTAL-HEALTH RISKS

This article offers objectification theory as a framework for understa nding the experiential consequences of being female in a culture that sexually objectifies the female body. Objectification theory posits th at girls and women are typically acculturated to internalize an observ er's perspective as a primary view of their physical selves. This pers pective an self can lead to habitual body monitoring, which, in turn, can increase women's opportunities for shame and anxiety, reduce oppor tunities for peak motivational states, and diminish awareness of inter nal bodily states. Accumulation is of such experiences may help accoun t for an array of mental health risks that disproportionately affect w omen: unipolar depression, sexual dysfunction, and eating disorders. O bjectification theory also illuminates why changes in these mental hea lth risks appear to occur in step with life-course changes in the fema le body.