Research Paper

For the final written assignment, you are required to submit a research paper that critically analyzes the selected topic, incorporates course materials, and follows APA-formatting guidelines. The research paper should be proofread to correct all grammatical and citation errors.

As you complete the research paper, assess your assignment.  It should include:

1.      A description of your topic and relevance to the course

1. Introduction should provide an overview of the paper
2. Clearly stated research question

2.  The background, current, and future issues related to your topic (if applicable)

a.     Explain the background/history of the topic.  What events, laws, policies, etc. have been related to the topic?

b.    How do these factors describe why your topic is an important social issue today?

c.    What are the current policies, debates, controversies, etc. related to the topic?

d.    How does the topic affect contemporary society?

e.   What social change do you predict will occur in relation to this topic in the future?

2.  The course materials and social theories that relate to your topic.

a.   Integrate sociological theories in analysis of topic

b.  How does your topic relate to the course and readings?

c.  Include specific references to course materials and other sources in analysis (include APA-formatted in-text citations

3.  Critical analysis of topic

                  a.   Provide in-depth analysis of the topic

                  b.   Discuss the relationship between gender and your selected topic

                  c.   Provide a conclusion with summary of findings and address related future research options

Instructions for assignment:

1. Paper should be 10+ pages in length, not including the title page & references
2. Follow APA-formatting guidelines
3. Include a References page.
4. Incorporate instructor feedback from previous writing assignments.
5. Include section headings where needed
6. Submit your paper no later than Sunday at 11:55 pm of Week Seven.
7. Review assignment before submitting for spelling, sentence structure, and grammatical errors.
8. Paper should be written in your own words (include proper APA-formatted citations for any referenced materials).

DISCLAIMER: “Originality of attachments will be verified by Turnitin. Both you and your instructor will receive the results.”

Assignment 3 meets the following course objectives:

• Evaluate theories that address the social construction of gender.
• Demonstrate the ability to identify, locate, and retrieve information related to the topics in the course.
• Develop written communication skills and critical thinking skills.
• Apply American Psychological Association formatting and citation style when completing course assignments.

This paper needs to be 100% free of plagiarism as it will be turned in and reviewed by turnitin.  Please do not waste my time if you are going to plagerize or submit the assignment back to me late.  I have attached two other assignments that I completed that coincide with this final assignment.

Running head: GENDER, BODY IMAGE AND THE MEDIA

1

GENDER, BODY IMAGE AND THE MEDIA
4

Gender, Body Image and the Media

Britney B. Hassan

American Public University System

SOCI 404

17 December 2017

The topic of gender and body image is a relevant issue regarding gender because it affects both men and women. Gendered images based on body image are instilled in individuals at a young age and are continuously influenced by society. Many of these influences come from the media, from television, magazine articles, and advertisements. By the time a child is 15 years old, she or he will have spent more hours watching television than attending school (Andersen & Witham, 2011).
Popular culture promotes and relays messages as to how an individual should be. These messages correspond socially acceptable standards of race, weight, and hair. These images or messages are referred to as “controlling images” and play a contributing factor in how people view themselves individually and also how they view others. In the media, women with a lighter skin tone are considered to be more desirable than females who are a shade or two darker. Having a European hair texture correlates to having “good hair”. Women are expected to be slim with flat stomachs and nice breasts. Men are expected to be tall, muscular, and overly masculine.
Everyone is terrified of aging and many turn to plastic surgery and Botox to fight the signs of age progression. For men and women who try to live up to these social standards, it can be exhausting. It can be stressful and it can also be the cause of low self-esteem and depression. Popular culture also promotes gender roles and distinctions between how a man or woman are suppose to look; competiveness amongst genders also evolves because individuals want to look better than their counterparts.
This research paper will provide a critical analysis of gender and body image by providing information on background, current, and future issues. By providing references and social theories relating to gender and body image as well as providing personal insight from men and women on their feelings towards popular culture and the medias influence on body image.
Gender, Body Image and the Media
1. The background of Gender, Body Image and the Media.
A.) The media has played a consequential role in popular culture and how it is
influential towards gender and body image. For the longest time, the media was responsible for helping in establishing gender roles. Girls are expected to wear pink, play with dolls and dress up. Boys are expected to wear blue, get dirty and swear. A mother is suppose to be the nurturer and care taker of the home, while fathers are expected to work and bring home the bacon. Women are also expected to be thin, with nice figures, hair and smiles. Men are expected to be tall and muscular with broad shoulders and astonishing strength. These gender roles and body images are continuously established through persuasive media.
B.) These factors describe why gender, body image and the media are important
social issues today because society, which is made up of men, women and children are being controlled by these images; they are forced into thinking that these certain societal standards are how they should be or should conform to. On various forms of diversity in society, the mass media and popular culture promote narrow definitions of who people are and what they can be (Andersen & Witham, 2011).
C.) Certain controversies or debates relating to this topic would be how individuals
view the media, specifically social media as a toxic mirror. Psychologists discovered robust cross-cultural evidence linking social media use to body image concerns, dieting, body surveillance, a drive for thinness and self-objectification in adolescents (How Social Media Is a Toxic Mirror, 2016).
D.) This topic affects contemporary society because of its ability to touch
individuals from all around the world, who are culturally and economically different. Social media increases human interconnection and globalization socially through gender and body image but we aren’t brought together for economic or humanitarian reasons.
E.) Social change that I believe will occur in relation to this topic and which has
recently begun to occur is the self-love movement. There are a lot of ads, primarily aimed at women but relay a message to men also, that encourage individuals to love themselves for who they are. These ads insist that you love your flaws and be confident and comfortable in your skin. There are now plus- size models, African American women are encouraged to love their skin and hair by going natural, men are also encouraged to share their feelings and become more vulnerable. There are interracial families and even same sex relationships displayed throughout the media now.
2. The course materials and social theories that relate to your topic.
A.) There are a plethora of theoretical perspectives to support this argument. The theoretical perspective chosen to support this argument is the social conflict theory. The social conflict theory views society as a system of groups that are not equal, and therefore consistently generate conflict and change.
B.) This topic relates to the course because it discusses and analyzes gender,
culture and the media. Popular culture, along with controlling images and the
evolution of these influential factors over time will be discussed.
3. Critical analysis of topic.
A.) How does the media influence gender and body image?
B.) The correlation between gender and this specific topic relates with how men
and women view themselves (gender and body image) based on societal influences.

References

Andersen, M. & Witham, D. H. (2011). Thinking about women: Sociological perspectives on sex and gender (9th ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon
https://study.com/academy/lesson/sociologys-four-theoretical-perspectives-structural-functional-social-conflict-feminism-symbolic-interactionism.html
How Social Media Is a Toxic Mirror. (n.d.). Retrieved December 17, 2017, from http://time.com/4459153/social-media-body-image/

Running head: ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY 1

ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY 6

Gender, Body Image and the Media

Britney B. Hassan

American Public University System

SOCI 404

31 December 2017

Annotated Bibliography on Gender, Body image and the Media

10 Reviewed Sources

Andersen, M. & Witham, D. H. (2011). Thinking about women: Sociological perspectives on sex and gender (9th ed.). Boston, MA: Allyn & Bacon

In this book, the author focuses on explaining or covering all facets of socially constructed gender roles and how these roles are shaped by cultural and media influences. This book also focuses on how social institutional factors such as family, education, religion, and economics, all play an instrumental role in the establishment of gender roles.

This book is relevant to my topic of interest because it discusses how gender roles are social constructed from childhood to adulthood and how an individual cultural locality affects certain gender roles and beliefs. The author’s main research findings focused on women, feminism, as well as the barriers and achievements that correlate with the two. This source would compare to my other sources because it focuses on the influential factors that develop gender roles but would contrast because there is a big emphasis on feminism.

Strengths: Covered a broad range of how gender is socially constructed through childhood learning patterns into adulthood.

Weaknesses: A lot of focus was exerted on women, feminist theory and its historical development.

How Social Media Is a Toxic Mirror. (n.d.). Retrieved December 17, 2017, from

http://time.com/4459153/social-media-body-image/

This article discusses how the media influences society and has an impact on gender roles. Movies, television, and magazines can negatively influence body image and more than often hinder body confidence in both men and women.

This article is relevant to my topic of interest because it analyzes how social media is a dynamic, influential force, guiding self-perception and social standard. Social media targets mainly teenagers but has an influence across all age brackets; Visual platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat deliver the tools that allow teens to earn approval for their appearance and compare themselves to others (How Social Media Is a Toxic Mirror, 2017). The author’s discussion focused on how the media contributes to body image, self worth, and even the mental state of certain individuals. This source would compare to my other sources because it focuses how social media affects self-perception within society.

Strengths: Very personal and uses real life situations or testimonies from individuals who have dealt with the negative influences that coalesce with social media.

Weaknesses: I would have liked to see how social media positively influences societal body image. Positive influence may be rare but that does not mean that it does not happen.

https://study.com/academy/lesson/sociologys-four-theoretical-perspectives-structural-functional-social-conflict-feminism-symbolic-interactionism.html

This article examines the four sociological theoretical perspectives and how these theories are essential in organizing social phenomena.

This article is correlates to my topic because it dives into what a theory is and the four main theoretical perspectives that consummate sociology. The author’s discussion is focused within sociology and how theories attempt to explain why groups of people choose to perform certain actions; how societies function or change in a certain way.

This source would compare to my other sources because it focuses on societal theories and how these theories are the foundation or correlate to societal construction.

Strengths: In depth explanation of the four sociological theoretical perspectives and how these theories coincide with gender, body image, and the media.

Weaknesses: None.

Carmichael, A. C. (Ed.). (2006). Sport and gender identities: masculinities, femininities and sexualities. Retrieved from

https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.ezproxy1.apus.edu

This book outlines how gender and sexuality, identifies policy as well as relations; how gender and sexuality are informed and formed by sport.

This particular book associates with my topic because it outlines how sport is an influential social factor on both males and females. This read discusses how sports are dissected into different categories of masculinities, sexualities, and femininities.

This source compares to my other sources because it discusses the changes of sports and how masculinities, sexualities, and femininities have condensed with one another over time.

Strengths: Discusses dominant identities within certain sports and how these identities have been challenged and changed historically.

Weaknesses: None.

Charlebois, J. (2012). The construction of masculinities and femininities in beverly hills, 90210. Retrieved from
https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.ezproxy1.apus.edu

This purpose of this book is to outline the representatives of masculinity and femininity in the television show Beverly Hills, 90210.

This particular book equates with my topic because it outlines how sport is an influential social factor on both males and females. The author examines gender and sexuality.

This source compares to my other sources because it examines how dominant forms of masculinity and femininity, hegemonic masculinities, emphasized femininities, and oppositional forms of femininity and masculinity coincide with gender, body image and the media.

Strengths: Dissects gender representation theoretically and methodically.

Weaknesses: None.

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/jessica-lovejoy/body-image-issues-are-not-just-for-women_b_5034285.html

This article discusses body image issues and the pressure that is placed on certain members of society to conform to these body standards. This particular article focuses on men and the stressors of living up to societies body image standards.

This article correlates with my topic because it discusses the double standard that is set in place when discussing men and women and body image.

This source compares to my other sources because it examines how the media negatively affects men and their perception of themselves through the media.

Strengths: Focuses on how the media negatively affects men and the double standard of this within today’s society.

Weaknesses: None.

http://www.cnn.com/2017/06/29/health/gender-stereotypes-media-children-partner/index.html

This article discusses how the media can have everlasting effects on children and how these gender stereotypes negatively affect children later on in life.

According to the report, which analyzed more than 150 articles, interviews, books, and other social-scientific research, gender stereotypes in movies and on TV shows are more than persistent; they’re incredibly effective at teaching kids what the culture expects of boys and girls (Knorr, 2017).

This source compares to my other sources because it examines the emotional intricacies of both men and women.

Strengths: Breaks down media influential factors by age and makes suggestions on what to do to break the cycle of mentally embedding social standards or norms in adolescents from childhood.

Weaknesses: Instead of focusing solely on age, the article could have shifted on how to mitigate social influences on adolescents of different races, religions, and environmental factors.

Hilliard, R. L. (2000). Media, education and America’s counter-culture revolution: lost and found opportunities for media impact on education, gender, race and the arts. Retrieved from

https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.ezproxy2.apus.edu

In this article the 1960s and 1970s revolution is discussed and how the media played a role in ending the war during this era.

According to the article, the media was an influential factor in persuading the president, American citizens. The media revealed the need for equal opportunity for the politically, socially, and economically dispossessed. Conversely, the media often regulated and even altered its reporting to avoid fanning any flames that might actually alter the status quo and result in change (Hilliard, 2000).

This source compares to my other sources because it discusses in detail how the media can significantly affect and influence individuals of a society.

Strengths: Goes into detail on how the media can affect the government and detrimental aspects of society such as the United States going to war.

Weaknesses: None.

Culture and Gender Roles in Society. Are Men and Women Equal? (n.d.). Retrieved December 31, 2017, from

https://culturematters.com/culture-and-gender-roles-in-society/

This source identifies how different cultures identify with certain gender roles in society.

To simplify it: in high scoring cultures, there seems to be relatively little role overlap; men are supposed to provide for their families, be the head of the family and do manly tasks like taking the garbage out. While in more feminine societies, there is more role overlap; here it is OK if a woman earns more than a man and the “stay at home dad” is more accepted than in masculine societies (Culture and Gender Roles in Society, 2017).

This source compares and contrast with my other sources because it discusses the similarities and differences between global cultural gender roles.

Strengths: Provides images and asks for these images to be examined by the reader for their own interpretation on the meaning of the image regarding gender.

Weaknesses: Would have been nice of a compare/contrast of a certain culture or religion that is significantly different from Americans.

Wolfe, L. (n.d.). Learn About Gender Discrimination in Society, the Biased Based on Sex. Retrieved December 31, 2017, from

https://www.thebalance.com/sex-vs-gender-the-role-society-plays-in-assigning-gender-3515720

This source focuses on gender discrimination and how it affects gender gaps or inconsistencies between men and women.

This article emphasizes that men shouldn’t be the blame for this discrepancies because they are socially construed. Although these male-driven societies revolve around the gender stereotype that men are superior, many of these attitudes stem from religious beliefs, and thousand-year-old culture, traditions, and rituals that even women have been slow to challenge- understandably, out of fear for their own lives, but also out of respect for long-standing values (Wolfe, 2017).

This source compares and contrast with my other sources because it discusses the similarities and differences between gender gaps, financially, and socially.

Strengths: Focuses on how religion plays a factor in gender discrimination.

Weaknesses: Would have liked to see more metrics on the differences between gender discrimination globally.