Macintyre et al found that the media have a major impact both on what people eat and also their attitudes to certain foods. However, researchers also state that many eating behaviours are limited by personal circumstances. Thus, people appear to learn from the media about healthy eating but must place this information within the broader context of their lives. Studies between parental modelling/social learning theory have been supported by Birch and Fisher in his study of mothers and daughters. They found that the best predictors of the daughters eating behaviour were the mothers dietary restraint and their perception of the risks of the daughters becoming overweight.
Research challenges the claim that social is important in developing attitudes to food and eating. Story et al found that higher social class was actually associated with greater rather than lower body dissatisfaction and lower rates of behaviour designed to lose weight. Other studies have found no relationship between the two, thus suggesting that social class is not a reliable indicator of eating behaviour. There is a generalisability problem with this research. Some research has studied clinical populations (i.e people diagnosed
At week four, food intake and appetite were assessed before and after a “preload”. At week 6, food intake was assessed under stressful conditions. Results showed that at both assessments session’s women in the diet condition ate more than women in the exercise and non-treatment conditions. This supports the boundary model because the study demonstrates that when restraining food intake because of the gap between hungers, its satiety becomes wider, therefore the dieters ate more. The restraint theory proposes an association between food restriction and overeating.
Signs and symptoms include amenorrhea, bradycardia, decreased blood pressure, osteoporosis, muscle loss and weakness, hair loss, and presence of lanugo (National Eating Disorders Association [NEDA], 2002). Most anorexics are perfectionists who believe that controlling their food intake will help them control at least one aspect of their lives. The two subtypes of anorexia nervosa include restrictive and binge-eating/purging (Halmi,
Biological psychologists believe that the key aspects of neuroanatomy, biochemistry and genetics are crucial in our understanding of human behaviour. I shall examine some research studies in order to assess the value of this approach in regard to the study of human behaviour. One example of how the biological approach can be used in our understanding of human behaviour is the study of eating disorders. Eating disorders is a term that describes a seriously disrupted appetite or eating habit. One of the most common types of eating disorder is anorexia nervosa, where the person suffering from it lives in fear of becoming overweight, and therefore starves themselves despite being dramatically underweight.
Physicians treat sexual dysfunctions in males and females using testosterone therapy in men and women. This therapy does help increase the desire for sexual activity in some cases. Viagra is used for men and usually is successful, the results of Viagra for women has not been as successful as for men (Nevid, & Rathus, 2005). As discussed before phases of sexual response cycle are excitement phase, plateau phase, the orgasmic phase, and the resolution phase. Each of these phases plays an important part of a healthy sexual relationship.
These results also showed that social factors also affect your health. Those that are in lower ranks of society are subjected to more social stress, which leads to higher chances of morbidity—general illness, and increased chances of smoking and unhealthy eating. Although this study was conducted over 40 years ago, the relationship between socioeconomic status and health is still seen currently. Today, lower class native-born Americans and immigrants see are affected by social
Holmstrom (2004) indicated that research has not only considered the cause of eating disorders, but media influence on eating pathology, body dissatisfaction, and body size estimation. Body dissatisfaction and body size estimation concepts are defined as “body image” for the analysis (Holmstrom, 2004, p. 196). Several theoretical models have been used when determining media influence on body image. Holmstrom (2004) referenced Festinger’s social comparison theory. Social comparison theory identified that individuals determine their value by comparing themselves with others who are more like them.
Functionalists would argue that obesity is necessary as a part of society. Functionalist's major arguement, after all, is that everything that exists must have a meaning and must be useful towards society as a whole. Perhaps functionalists would argue that by having obese people, we draw attention to problems in health care and obesity might be a key in leaning more about the human psyche, our emotional connection to food and to further explore man's relationship with eating and nourishment. The obese population might inspire others to be healthier and might inform and educate society as a whole about the dangers of obesity and it's overall impact. Whatever they argue or use to explain obesity, functionalists would say that it is valid and important to society and is better for society as a whole.
This survey method was chosen by researchers because it gives the researcher opportunity to describe a variable that naturally occur and gives prediction. For example, when research was conducted among college students, and young adults to determine their eating attitude and behavior, it was clear that college students and young adults are more at risk of eating disorders. The research also went ahead to establish problems associated with eating disorders and established that college students are vulnerable to body dissatisfaction as well as poor dieting. Correlational research also gives the researcher opportunity to predict what happens thereafter (Zechmeister, Zechmeister,