Understanding the sociocultural factors influencing body image and eating behaviors is critical for coping the body dissatisfaction and eating disorders, particularly it is interesting to investigate the effect of the interplay between Westernization and traditional Chinese values on body image and eating behavior attitudes in China. Eating disorders and body dissatisfaction affect people of different cultures, ages, and genders. Here we selected a sample of Chinese study women aged 18-30 years old. They are at a special period of life: just coming of age, leaving their families to go to university or start working. Therefore, they have some special behaviors or thoughts. Based on this, it is necessary to know more about them, which can help us to develop better mental support for them. This qualitative study exploring how sociocultural pressures shape body image and furthermore influence eating behaviors in young Chinese women, and risk factors for body dissatisfaction and eating disorders in a population of young people of Chinese nationality. Ten participants aged 18 to 26 were interviewed, and each lasted 30 to 60 min. The thematic analysis (TA) was employed to identify key themes related to body image, sociocultural influences, body ideals and eating behaviors. Three themes were synthesized: (1) Culturally Determined Eating Behaviors (2) Dieting for an Ideal Body, (3) Social Expectations for a Thin Body. Findings reveal that sociocultural pressures greatly influence body image and perceptions of the ideal body shape, which in turn influences young people's eating behaviors. However, young women are actively adopting healthy lifestyles to cope with these pressures and believe in their ability to resist them. In the future, we can explore the impact of sociocultural factors and emerging media on the positive body image and broad conceptualization of beauty of young women in China and promote healthier eating behaviors among them.
Comprendere i fattori socioculturali che influenzano l'immagine corporea e i comportamenti alimentari è fondamentale per affrontare l'insoddisfazione corporea e i disturbi alimentari, in particolare è interessante indagare l'effetto dell'interazione tra l'occidentalizzazione e i valori tradizionali cinesi sull'immagine corporea e sugli atteggiamenti alimentari in Cina. I disturbi alimentari e l'insoddisfazione corporea colpiscono persone di diverse culture, età e sesso. Qui abbiamo selezionato un campione di donne cinesi di età compresa tra i 18 e i 30 anni. Si trovano in un periodo particolare della vita: sono appena diventate maggiorenni, lasciano la famiglia per andare all'università o iniziare a lavorare. Pertanto, hanno comportamenti o pensieri particolari. Per questo motivo, è necessario conoscerle meglio, per aiutarci a sviluppare un migliore supporto mentale per loro. Questo studio qualitativo esplora il modo in cui le pressioni socioculturali modellano l'immagine corporea e influenzano i comportamenti alimentari nelle giovani donne cinesi, nonché i fattori di rischio per l'insoddisfazione corporea e i disturbi alimentari in una popolazione di giovani di nazionalità cinese. Sono state intervistate dieci partecipanti di età compresa tra i 18 e i 26 anni, per una durata di 30-60 minuti ciascuna. L'analisi tematica (AT) è stata utilizzata per identificare i temi chiave relativi all'immagine corporea, alle influenze socioculturali, agli ideali corporei e ai comportamenti alimentari. Sono stati sintetizzati tre temi: (1) Comportamenti alimentari determinati culturalmente (2) Dieta per un corpo ideale, (3) Aspettative sociali per un corpo magro. I risultati rivelano che le pressioni socioculturali influenzano notevolmente l'immagine del corpo e la percezione della forma corporea ideale, che a sua volta influenza i comportamenti alimentari dei giovani. Tuttavia, le giovani donne adottano attivamente stili di vita sani per far fronte a queste pressioni e credono nella loro capacità di resistere. In futuro, potremo esplorare l'impatto dei fattori socioculturali e dei media emergenti sull'immagine corporea positiva e sull'ampia concettualizzazione della bellezza delle giovani donne cinesi e promuovere tra loro comportamenti alimentari più sani.
L'Impatto delle Influenze Socioculturali sull'Immagine Corporea e sugli Ideali di Bellezza tra le Giovani Donne Cinesi: Uno Studio Qualitativo
NIU, XINYAO
2023/2024
Abstract
Understanding the sociocultural factors influencing body image and eating behaviors is critical for coping the body dissatisfaction and eating disorders, particularly it is interesting to investigate the effect of the interplay between Westernization and traditional Chinese values on body image and eating behavior attitudes in China. Eating disorders and body dissatisfaction affect people of different cultures, ages, and genders. Here we selected a sample of Chinese study women aged 18-30 years old. They are at a special period of life: just coming of age, leaving their families to go to university or start working. Therefore, they have some special behaviors or thoughts. Based on this, it is necessary to know more about them, which can help us to develop better mental support for them. This qualitative study exploring how sociocultural pressures shape body image and furthermore influence eating behaviors in young Chinese women, and risk factors for body dissatisfaction and eating disorders in a population of young people of Chinese nationality. Ten participants aged 18 to 26 were interviewed, and each lasted 30 to 60 min. The thematic analysis (TA) was employed to identify key themes related to body image, sociocultural influences, body ideals and eating behaviors. Three themes were synthesized: (1) Culturally Determined Eating Behaviors (2) Dieting for an Ideal Body, (3) Social Expectations for a Thin Body. Findings reveal that sociocultural pressures greatly influence body image and perceptions of the ideal body shape, which in turn influences young people's eating behaviors. However, young women are actively adopting healthy lifestyles to cope with these pressures and believe in their ability to resist them. In the future, we can explore the impact of sociocultural factors and emerging media on the positive body image and broad conceptualization of beauty of young women in China and promote healthier eating behaviors among them.File | Dimensione | Formato | |
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https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12608/78591