Automatic pro-thin/anti-fat biases can develop without previous visual exposure to body shapes

Abstract

Endorsement of the thin beauty ideal increases risk for future body dissatisfaction and eating disorders among women. Visual-based media is theorized to be a central pathway through which the thin ideal is internalized. This internalization process results in formation of automatic pro-thin and anti-fat attitudes. However, it is often difficult to separate the contribution of visual-based media and other forms of communication in the creation of such attitudes. Using a novel auditory implicit association test, we show that women with congenital blindness with no previous exposure to body shapes develop automatic pro-thin and anti-fat attitudes to the same extent as sighted women. This result was replicated in studies conducted in two countries involving a combined total of 62 women with blindness and 80 sighted women. Results suggest that internalization of the thin ideal can occur without visual exposure to images of the thin beauty ideal or visual exposure to one’s own body.