Ogle and Thornburg (2003) conducted a study examining the body-related content in Girl Zone, an online teen magazine. This study examined all content on the site except advertisements, which totaled 55 features related to body appearance, ideals, changes, satisfaction, or related behaviors, such as dieting and exercising. Content was analyzed for themes using the constant comparative process. The researchers found three prominent themes that are different from themes found in most magazines that target adolescent females. The site highlighted common concerns teens had about their bodies, helped deconstruct body-related discourses common in mainstream media, and provided strategies to help deal with societal pressure to conform to ideals along with ways to change those ideals. The authors suggest that the content that Girl Zone provides (and print and online publications like it) is a step in the process of restoring a socially responsible approach that nurtures girls during a time when they tend to be more self-conscious and are trying to understand physical changes.
Though out of context, women can play a strong role in the messages promoted to younger girls.
(Miller, n.d.)
York Region Health Services created a handout to help teens develop a positive body image. The tips listed are all very helpful, but adults should especially pay attention to the following: be a positive role model, talk about their insides not their outsides, banish teasing, resist the temptation to put teens on a diet, and explore different types of physical activities. These tips should help teens to develop a positive body image naturally, without the diet tips and fitness regimes that are promoted in most teen magazines. Online magazine Web sites, like Girl Zone, are great to help counter the other types of teen magazines, but parents and adults also play a very important role in girls’ development.
