Internalizing the Impossible: Anorexic Outpatients' Experiences With Women's Beauty and Fashion Magazines

Abstract

A growing body of research has linked the readership of women's beauty and fashion magazines with the development and perpetuation of anorexic behaviors in some young women. Although we know the link exists, little is known about the actual cognitive processes and the ways in which at risk women "use" these magazines to internalize the impossible thin ideal that appears to drive the illness. To understand this phenomenon and the process of internalization in greater depth, the authors conducted qualitative, semi-structured interviews with 28 outpatients at an eating disorder treatment facility in the western United States. Using a grounded theory approach, the authors' analysis provides a detailed description drawn from the patients' personal accounts of how the magazines have influenced their lives and eating-disordered behaviors.