How does the image of women displayed in the Cosmopolitan affect the Essay

How does the image of women displayed in the Cosmopolitan affect the self-image of women in the UK - Essay Example ............................................. 5. Conclusion............................................................................................................. REFERENCES LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: Female Imagery in the UK Cosmopolitan Magazine................................... Figure 2: High Priced Celebrity Fashion Merchandise Imagery................................. ABSTRACT The UK Cosmopolitan provides many different images of what society considers the idealised female form: the slender, voluptuous and high fashion-conscious celebrity often depicted in many beauty-inspired media sources. Through continuous exposure to these images, women are often embattled with a struggle to gain self-image improvements whereby the idealised female form dictated by media sources provides confidence problems to women who have not attained this socially-mandated goal. Research indicates that UK society often believes overweight women or those who are not as outwardly attractive cannot fi nd success or achievement, thereby creating the foundation for anxiety production when women view these images and believe they are inferior to the models illustrated. Empirical research, psychological and sociological theories, and even marketing theories lend support to the notion that women in the UK are dramatically impacted, in relation to their own perceptions of self-image, due to the UK Cosmopolitan. ... This paper focuses on theory and research investigations in an attempt to justify that self-image is negatively impacted through such media depiction of females. The findings of this project indicate that socially-driven ideals, reference group sentiment, tangible anxiety production in the female brain, and advertising influence supporting visualisation in media of the idealised female body contribute most strongly to self-image problems in UK women. How does the image of women displayed in the Cosmopolitan affect the self-image of women in the UK? 1. Introduction The UK Cosmopolitan consists of a variety of media catering to those who maintain a worldview of hedonism, a form of self-indulgence and high-living whereby contemporary ideologies associated with a sense of social superiority, attainment of personal pleasure, and exhibition of outward elegance and modishness are primary social virtues1. There are many other respected definitions of Cosmopolitanism, such as maintaining a be lief that one belongs to the entire world rather than being limited to a singular, national region, as well as maintaining a contemporary type of sophistication and stylishness which makes one high class and socially exceptional. In the United Kingdom, the media magazine Cosmopolitan is a prime example of the aforementioned definitions of Cosmopolitanism which explores such issues as sex, health, fashion, celebrity and beauty enhancement. This media source, among many others sharing a focus on the female target segments, exemplify the notion of Cosmopolitanism by appealing to a contemporary woman consumer who values social conceptions of beauty, vanity and sophistication. The media is a significant source of influence on female Western values in today’s society, illustrating