Mirror exposure following visual body-size adaptation does not affect own body image
Prolonged visual exposure to large bodies produces a thinning aftereffect on subsequently seen bodies, and vice versa. This visual adaptation effect could contribute to the link between media exposure and body shape misperception. Indeed, people exposed to thin bodies in the media, who experience fa...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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The Royal Society
2023-08-01
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| Series: | Royal Society Open Science |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsos.221589 |
| _version_ | 1797742486715629568 |
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| author | Thomas Chazelle Michel Guerraz Richard Palluel-Germain |
| author_facet | Thomas Chazelle Michel Guerraz Richard Palluel-Germain |
| author_sort | Thomas Chazelle |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Prolonged visual exposure to large bodies produces a thinning aftereffect on subsequently seen bodies, and vice versa. This visual adaptation effect could contribute to the link between media exposure and body shape misperception. Indeed, people exposed to thin bodies in the media, who experience fattening aftereffects, may internalize the distorted image of their body they see in the mirror. This preregistered study tested this internalization hypothesis by exposing 196 young women to an obese adaptor before showing them their reflection in the mirror, or to a control condition. Then, we used a psychophysical task to measure the effects of this procedure on perceptual judgements about their own body size, relative to another body and to the control mirror exposure condition. We found moderate evidence against the hypothesized self-specific effects of mirror exposure on perceptual judgements. Our work strengthens the idea that body size adaptation affects the perception of test stimuli rather than the participants' own body image. We discuss recent studies which may provide an alternative framework to study media-related distortions of perceptual body image. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T14:41:31Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-eaa99a77e79a46e4b5e2f2b95ac75248 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2054-5703 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T14:41:31Z |
| publishDate | 2023-08-01 |
| publisher | The Royal Society |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Royal Society Open Science |
| spelling | doaj.art-eaa99a77e79a46e4b5e2f2b95ac752482023-08-16T07:05:33ZengThe Royal SocietyRoyal Society Open Science2054-57032023-08-0110810.1098/rsos.221589Mirror exposure following visual body-size adaptation does not affect own body imageThomas Chazelle0Michel Guerraz1Richard Palluel-Germain2Univ. Grenoble Alpes, Univ. Savoie Mont Blanc, CNRS, LPNC, 38000 Grenoble, FranceUniv. Grenoble Alpes, Univ. Savoie Mont Blanc, CNRS, LPNC, 38000 Grenoble, FranceUniv. Grenoble Alpes, Univ. Savoie Mont Blanc, CNRS, LPNC, 38000 Grenoble, FranceProlonged visual exposure to large bodies produces a thinning aftereffect on subsequently seen bodies, and vice versa. This visual adaptation effect could contribute to the link between media exposure and body shape misperception. Indeed, people exposed to thin bodies in the media, who experience fattening aftereffects, may internalize the distorted image of their body they see in the mirror. This preregistered study tested this internalization hypothesis by exposing 196 young women to an obese adaptor before showing them their reflection in the mirror, or to a control condition. Then, we used a psychophysical task to measure the effects of this procedure on perceptual judgements about their own body size, relative to another body and to the control mirror exposure condition. We found moderate evidence against the hypothesized self-specific effects of mirror exposure on perceptual judgements. Our work strengthens the idea that body size adaptation affects the perception of test stimuli rather than the participants' own body image. We discuss recent studies which may provide an alternative framework to study media-related distortions of perceptual body image.https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsos.221589visual adaptationbody representationbody image distortionbody size and shape misperceptionself-specific effectsmedia influence |
| spellingShingle | Thomas Chazelle Michel Guerraz Richard Palluel-Germain Mirror exposure following visual body-size adaptation does not affect own body image Royal Society Open Science visual adaptation body representation body image distortion body size and shape misperception self-specific effects media influence |
| title | Mirror exposure following visual body-size adaptation does not affect own body image |
| title_full | Mirror exposure following visual body-size adaptation does not affect own body image |
| title_fullStr | Mirror exposure following visual body-size adaptation does not affect own body image |
| title_full_unstemmed | Mirror exposure following visual body-size adaptation does not affect own body image |
| title_short | Mirror exposure following visual body-size adaptation does not affect own body image |
| title_sort | mirror exposure following visual body size adaptation does not affect own body image |
| topic | visual adaptation body representation body image distortion body size and shape misperception self-specific effects media influence |
| url | https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsos.221589 |
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