“IAmSizeSexy”: A health communication body image study

Abstract

Objective

The aim of this study was to formatively evaluate a health communication campaign on body image targeting undergraduate female students.

Participants

A total of 331 students at a large public Midwestern university participated in the study.

Methods

Researchers used central intercept procedures to recruit students from residence halls. After viewing the campaign materials, students completed an online survey assessing their message endorsement and level of eating disorder symptomology and provided open-ended comments.

Results

Students appreciated the message and thought it was effective, though students with greater body image concerns were less receptive to the message. Thematic analysis indicated students perceive body image to be a relevant issue, yet they want the university to provide more attention to, and information on, the topic.

Conclusions

Overall, students understood the message and found it helpful. Nevertheless, students with body image issues responded less favorably, warranting the need for secondary and tertiary prevention.

Keywords:

• Body image
• eating disorders
• formative research
• health communication
• message testing

Conflict of interest disclosure

The authors have no conflicts of interest to report. The authors confirm that the research presented in this article met the ethical guidelines, including adherence to the legal requirements, of the United States of America and received approval from the University of Toledo .

Additional information

Funding

Peter Paprzycki is partially supported by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number 5 U54 GM115428. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.