Student Research

Laura McDowell

Research incorporating both acculturation levels and the degree of ethnic identity on body image perceptions is minimal, although it is incredibly important when attempting to understand the difference, and shift, in body dissatisfaction among Western and non-Western women (Soh, Touyz, & Surgenor, 2006).  Research has shown that non-Western societies have valued much fuller, voluptuous bodied women in the past, as opposed to thin, small-waist females, which have been deemed characteristics associated with the ideal body image in Western culture (Contento, Basch, & Zybert, 2003; Pompper, & Koenig, 2004: Soh, Touyz, & Surgenor, 2006).  Non-Western cultures have been able to avoid high prevalence rates of eating disorders in comparison to Caucasian women within the United States because of this ideology, however we have begun to see a shift in this trend (Soh, Touyz, & Surgenor, 2006).

The current study I am working on with Dr. Carson aims to examine the role of ethnic identity, acculturation, and exposure to dominant cultural values on the perceptions of body image of U.S.-born and foreign-born Hispanic and Caucasian females.  By measuring body dissatisfaction, levels of ethnic identity and acculturation through the exploration of sociocultural influences, we hope to investigate the current rise in body dissatisfaction among Hispanic Americans.  In order to gain a clear understanding of the importance of the specific influences of culture on body image for Hispanic women, we use both quantitative and qualitative measures.  Scales measuring levels of ethnic identity, cultural and media influences, perceptions of the ideal body size and shape, as well as acculturation measures will be used.  We will supplement these findings with a qualitative measure, a semi-structured interview, which will help us further explore the influences of one’s family, their own culture, and the dominant culture on body (dis)satisfaction. 

  Ekene Ndubuisi

Acculturation is generally defined as the process of change that occurs when people from different cultural backgrounds come in contact with one another (Redfield, Linton & Herskovits, 1936 as cited in Kang, 2006; Berry, 1980 as cited in Unger et al., 2002). In essence, acculturation can also be seen as the process of adapting to the norms of a dominant culture, which has implications for language usage, choice of friends, and food preferences (Kim & Omizo, 2006). The result of any type of contact with another culture, especially a more dominant culture, can lead individuals to change the way they talk, how they act in different social settings, their attitudes and belief systems as well their food and entertainment choices. These changes might also cause individuals to experience identity and interpersonal conflict and stress (Unger et al., 2006). Acculturation and the acculturative processes require that individuals undergo major cognitive and behavioral changes and their ease at dealing with these changes will have implications for their adaptation in the United States and for their psychological well being. A variety of factors that influence the process of acculturation have already been identified. For example, knowledge of English, exposure to the dominant culture, a strong sense of ethnic identity and access to social support are all known to reduce acculturative stress. One other variable that is likely to influence one’s acculturative experiences but few researchers have looked at, is cultural orientation (Schwartz, Montgomery & Briones, 2006). Cultural orientation is defined in terms of the social patterns and constructs that exist within a given culture. Cultural orientation has been identified along two broad dimensions: individualism and collectivism (Triandis, 1995). An individualistic cultural orientation emphasizes independence, privacy, and self-motivation while a collectivistic cultural orientation emphasizes interdependence, reliance on others and responsibility towards others (Hui, 1988; Dutta-Bergman & Wells, 2002). At the individual level, cultural orientation has been operationalized as idiocentric (individually-oriented) or allocentric (collectivistically-oriented).  This examination of individual self-construal is important in order to recognize that one can be allocentric within an individualistically oriented culture and vice-versa (Markus & Kitayama, 1991; Miller, 1984, Singelis, 1994, as cited in Dutta-Bergman & Wells, 2002). Schwartz, Montgomery and Briones (2006) have specifically examined the role of identity in acculturation and advanced the theoretical notion that an individual’s self-construal, whether allocentric or idiocentric, will be related to their adaptational capacities during acculturation. This is because, according to the authors, acculturation represents challenges to one’s cultural identity.  Therefore, one’s cultural orientation and subsequently self-construal may change as people acculturate. Our study will examine this relationship between cultural orientation, self-construal and acculturation among international students at Manhattanville College.  We believe that individuals’ cultures will have implications for their ease of acculturation and adaptation, especially for new arrived immigrants because it will govern the way they view themselves and consequently their interactions and behaviors.