'Is that supposed to be sexy?' Women discuss women in 'top shelf' magazines

Given that some critics have accused sexually explicit materials (SEMs) of preparing women's bodies for consumption by others, this paper documents wo men discussing images of other women's bodies in SEM. The aim of the paper is to outline different reactions and viewpoints women express when present ed with sexually explicit images of the Female body. An opportunity sample of 30 female undergraduates aged between 18 and 34 completed focus groups, where 10 copies of 'top shelf' magazines, aimed at a heterosexual audience were discussed. Discourse analysis revealed several consistent themes. Part icipants described the pictures by identifying with the models, or by dista ncing themselves ('like me' and 'not like me' discourses). Conversations in cluded participant's own 'natural' sexuality, juxtaposed with the magazine images. Concern about the 'comfort' and attractiveness of models was also o bserved. Viewing the magazines allowed participants to discuss a number of related issues including censorship, sexuality, relationships and body imag e; in an area of research which has traditionally overlooked qualitative re search and female participants. Copyright (C) 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.