Valerie Loureda’s controversial thong is an ideal opportunity to discuss issues surrounding body image and self-acceptance. Her choice during the Bellator weigh-in proves that beauty comes in all forms and sizes while challenging social norms that contribute to low self-esteem.
Loureda is a former mixed martial arts fighter and recently made her wrestling debut in WWE NXT under the name Lola Vice, with an undefeated record so far in this promotion.
Self-acceptance and body positivity
Positive self-image can play an integral part in living a healthier lifestyle. It can increase energy and motivation levels while encouraging good eating habits and exercise habits that lead to greater overall wellbeing. A positive self-image also reduces anxiety and depression risks. It is crucial to love and accept all parts of your body – quirks and imperfections alike!
Being confident about oneself involves understanding and appreciating all of the unique attributes that define us – such as height, eye color and hair texture – while accepting others for who they are regardless of society’s definitions of beauty or ideal body types.
The body positivity movement offers teens and tweens today a way to think positively about themselves and build healthy relationships with their bodies, but it’s not without its critics, who argue that its misuse could cause damage. Therefore, it is crucial for participants to know which aspects of this movement are beneficial versus harmful.
Instagram has become the go-to platform for many online communities, where members can upload pictures of themselves and engage with one another by liking or commenting. People using these platforms frequently post unfiltered, natural images rather than staged poses designed to accentuate specific features; this may create unrealistic expectations regarding one’s physical features that lead to anxiety and depression.
According to a new study, social media’s effects on body image go beyond superficial. Researchers discovered that using a weight loss app that offers tailored nutrition and exercise advice resulted in greater improvements to participants’ body appreciation scores than control groups who did not use such apps. It seems psychological approaches such as acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT), dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) or cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) may be more successful at increasing body positivity and self-compassion than non-specialized weight loss programs in improving body positivity and self-compassion than non-specialized weight loss programs in improving body positivity and self-compassion among participants.
However, body positivity and body neutrality should not be used interchangeably. Jordan Helcbergier of the Office of Student Life Student Wellness Center notes that body positivity refers to an overall social movement aimed at body acceptance whereas body neutrality refers to your personal philosophy about how you view yourself and your body.
The impact of societal standards on body image
Social standards can have a major effect on body image, which are frequently set by media and peers. Such standards often focus on weight and shape as well as unrealistic expectations of how others should look; these expectations may lead to body dissatisfaction as well as unhealthy eating behaviors such as overexerting or restrictive dieting; negative body images also often contribute to low self-esteem and depression – both detrimental outcomes to overall mental wellbeing.
Women and girls may also be affected by how family members perceive their bodies, with family members engaging in weight-based teasing that results in body dissatisfaction and unhealthy eating patterns for many of the adolescent girls involved in one study. Furthermore, this may impede physical activity participation as youth may feel they lack confidence with themselves because they don’t feel secure in their skin.
Positive body image development can take several forms, yet societal norms have an enormous influence over how an individual perceives themselves and perceives others. Media platforms play an especially powerful role here; especially social media which is widely used among teenagers and young adults. According to studies done on comparisons between an individual’s own physical appearance with that of their social media “idols” can cause dissatisfaction as these comparisons focus on thinness ideals individuals yearn for and body dissatisfaction and eating disorders are among teens and young adults who compare themselves against these “idols”.
To address this problem, media literacy programs are recommended as a solution, to raise awareness of media’s ultra-curated, performative standards. Such programs can expose ideologies embedded into images consumed daily by young people; and encourage them to judge themselves using health criteria rather than other people’s appearance as the standard for self-evaluation. It also recommends encouraging young people to view appearance-neutral content on social media as this has been shown to reduce body dissatisfaction.
Media’s portrayal of the ’ideal’ body
Research indicates that exposure to unrealistic “ideal” bodies depicted in media influences people’s perceptions of beauty. This is especially true for women who internalize cultural ideals of thin bodies as the norm; such ideals are further reinforced through media depictions of thin models across various forms of media including films, music videos, fashion magazines and advertisements.
Old Navy is making strides toward diversity by including plus size models in its ads and commercials, while more companies are adopting body positivity as part of their company message to foster inclusivity and promote self-love. Yet media’s effect on body image remains an unanswerable question.
Studies have demonstrated that, despite widespread knowledge that many media images aren’t real life-like, consumers still tend to favor products and celebrities portrayed as more flawless by media retouching, which digitally erases pimples or uneven skin tones from photos, or takes steps such as taking flesh away to make models appear slimmer. These effects are likely attributable to media’s manipulation of photos and visual elements where imperfections such as pimples or uneven skin tones are digitally erased while flesh is digitally removed in certain places to make models appear slimmer.
Furthermore, media organizations frequently employ unrealistic beauty standards as advertising platforms and inspire viewers to believe they too can attain these ideals by purchasing certain brands marketed as weight loss or fitness aids. Furthermore, advertisements regularly pair thin models with products sold as weight loss or fitness solutions.
Researchers have noted that an individual’s psychological motives when viewing idealized media images can have a substantial effect on how they react to them. For example, those engaging in trait social comparison – or tendencies to compare oneself with others – often experience more negative mood and body dissatisfaction when exposed to media that depict thin idealized bodies than those who don’t engage in this form of comparison.
There is now ample evidence demonstrating how media representations of beauty can be leveraged to foster body positivity in society. One promising approach involves using media literacy skills to reduce harmful effects from thin ideal imagery. Furthermore, an intervention that addresses motivations behind viewing thin-idealized media may prove especially successful in doing this.
Social media refers to an array of internet-based tools through which individuals share information and ideas, personal messages, or content (such as videos). Since its early appearance almost as soon as technology could support it, its popularity has skyrocketed rapidly. While its roots lie in early forms of online communication such as email and bulletin board systems, its growth exploded as web became an international network providing interactive discussion forums between individuals.
At present, there are hundreds of different social media platforms that enable users to post and share content with their followers. Some platforms are more popular than others and each offers its own set of features aimed at increasing user engagement while helping businesses with marketing and advertising efforts.
Law enforcement agencies rely heavily on intelligence gleaned from these platforms for tracking criminals and investigating cases, but it must be noted that these tools carry risks themselves; social media websites are frequently compromised by cybercriminals, while many platforms lack adequate safeguards to keep data private.
Social media remains an invaluable tool for law enforcement agencies despite these drawbacks, and was instrumental in the arrest of suspects involved with the Boston Marathon bombings through public identification through social media posts. Police could then rely on public assistance in arresting these individuals.
Social media has also played an instrumental role in gang prosecutions. Ruha Benjamin and Katy Pearce found that, in one city, nearly 50% of evidence presented at gang cases relied upon social media activity as evidence; social media allows youth to connect and exchange information relating to crimes committed within a gang, leading them down a path that leads them back into criminality.
Social media can create a double standard when it comes to body image; those who portray themselves more positively as “beautiful” often receive recognition on these platforms while those who do not meet these standards may be considered “ugly”. This could have an adverse impact on young women’s self-esteem.