Promoting a Positive Perception of One’s
Physical Appearance (Body-Image)
For this portion of the workshop, males and females should be separated. This
separation should promote a more comfortable environment; thus, allowing
students to be more willing to share their feelings. The staff should contain 6-8
individuals (4 females and 4 males) to attend to 40-60 students. The workshop
should be a total of 2 hours and should be done in one day.
Objectives
o To understand body-image
o To understand that people are
unique
o To develop a positive/healthy
body-image (physical appearance)
Format
o Hands-on Learning
o Interactive Group Discussions
o Activities
(Blankartist, 2009)
Male Session
To promote a more comfortable environment, the staff for this portion should be male. The staff
should consist of three to four individuals to accommodate 40-60 male students. Total session
time is two hours.
Activity 1: Ice Breaker (30 minutes)
Drawing Exercise
o Purpose of this exercise is for students to get a sense about how they feel about their
physical appearance.
o This exercise should be done in groups and followed by a discussion that will lead to the
discussion of body-image.
Body-Image Discussion (45 minutes – 1 hour)
o Provide definitions to the following terms using student input
o Body-Image
o Body Dissatisfaction
o Masculinity

Discuss factors of masculinity
o Create and Discuss a list of factors that influences a person body-image
o Items on the list should be mainly from the students
Activity 2: Media Analysis (20-30 minutes)
o Show a commercial that is geared towards males
o i.e. AXE, Gillette, Old Spice, and Adidas
o Discuss with the student the type of man that was used and how that made them
feel

Would they feel different if they resembled the man being portrayed than
if they did not?

Should these commercial portray varieties of physical appearances to
advocate self-acceptance/positive body-image?
Conclusion (10-15 minutes)
o Revisit the drawings and lists from Activity 1
o Remind students that there is no one “ideal” physical appearance

Different cultures have different ideas about what is considered ideal
o Tell students to keep the drawings from the ice breaker to remind them of things
they appreciate about their physical appearance.

This helps to promote a positive perception of their physical
appearance/body-image.
Female Session
To promote a more comfortable environment, the staff for this portion should be female. The
staff should consist of three to four individuals to accommodate 40-60 female students. Total
session time is two hours.
Activity 1: Ice Breaker (30 minutes)
Drawing Exercise
o Purpose of this exercise is for students to get a sense about how they feel about their
physical appearance.
o This exercise should be done in groups and followed by a discussion that will lead to the
discussion of body-image.
Body-Image Discussion (45 minutes – 1 hour)
o Provide definitions to the following terms using student input
o Body-Image
o Body Dissatisfaction
o Femininity

Discuss factors of femininity
o Create and Discuss a list of factors that influences a person body-image
o Items on the list should be mainly from the students
Activity 2: Song Analysis (20-30 minutes)
o Play a song that advocates self-acceptance
o i.e. “Beautiful” by Christina Aguilera, “Born This Way” by Lady Gaga, “Who
Says” by Selena Gomez
o Discuss with students the message the song communicates

Does the song make them better about themselves?

Should there be more songs like this or maybe even media event that
advocates positive body-image/self-acceptance?
Conclusion (10-15 minutes)
o Revisit drawing and list from Activity 1
o Remind students that there is no one “ideal” physical appearance

Different cultures have different ideas about what is considered ideal
o Tell students to keep the drawings from the ice breaker to remind them of things
they appreciate about their physical appearance.

This helps to promote a positive perception of their physical
appearance/body-image.
Appendix 1: Ice Breaker
Drawing Exercise
o Materials
o Paper
o Pencils, Pens, Crayons, or Markers
o Objective
o For students to get understanding how they feel about their physical appearance
o To promote positive body-image discussion
o Purpose
o To get a sense of how they feel about their physical appearance.
o To focus on appreciating aspects of their physical appearance instead of
criticizing their physical appearance.
o To begin to build a positive body-image
o Instructions
1. Pass out paper to the students.
 This exercise is better when done in groups.
2. Have students draw themselves (Does not have to be artistically done).
3. After completing the picture, have students makes a list of things they like or
appreciate about their body/physical appearance on one side of their picture.
 There should be at least five things on the list and they are only allowed to
put one thing do not like about their body/physical appearance.
4. After about 15 minutes of drawing and list making, have students explain their list
to other people in their group
 They must explain items on their like list to gain a better understanding of
why they appreciate these aspects of themselves.
 Staff should walk around to the groups to encourage more discussion and
also engage in the discussion (Staff should already have done the exercise
so that they can engage in the group discussions when walking around to
the groups).
Appendix 2: Body Image Discussion
Discussion
o Materials
o A whiteboard, chalkboard, smart board, or an overhead projector will be needed
to write definitions and lists down that were created by the students
o Purpose
o To inform students about body-image and body dissatisfaction
o To define either masculinity or femininity (depends on the session)
o To understand that many factors influences an person’s body-image
o Guidelines
o The first part of the discussion will focus on defining body-image and body
dissatisfaction.

The students should be involved in developing the definitions for bodyimage and body-dissatisfaction.
o The second part of the discussion will focus on defining masculinity or
femininity.

This is important because some people judge their physical appearance
based on what they think is feminine or masculine.

Ask students what makes a person masculine or feminine.

Make a list of their answers and discuss the ones that are based on
physical appearance.
o The third part of the discussion will focus on the factors that contribute to a
person’s body-image and body dissatisfaction.

This will help the students understand that numerous factors contribute to
how we perceive our physical appearance.

Make a list of factors based on student responses and discuss how these
factors can influence a person’s body-image/physical appearance.
Appendix 3: Media Analysis
Male Session: Media Analysis
o Materials
o A computer or laptop that has internet access
o A projector so that all students can view and hear the commercial
o Objective
o To understand that media is a factor that can influence a person’s body-image.
o To enhance or promote self-acceptance in relation to physical appearance.
o Purpose
o To discuss the impacts of that the commercial could have on males.
o Instructions
1. Show a commercial that is geared towards males.

i.e. AXE, Gillette, Old Spice, or Adidas
2. After the commercial, discuss the following:

What is being emphasized in the commercial?

What impact could this commercial have on a young male?

Would they feel different if they resembled the man being portrayed than
if they did not?

Should these commercial portray varieties of physical appearances to
advocate self-acceptance/positive body-image?
3. This discussion should help students understand that media impacts people
differently.

This impact could be positive if a person resembles the ideal physical
appearance portrayed in the media.

This impact could be negative if a person does not resemble the ideal
physical appearance portrayed in the media.

Can result in body dissatisfaction which might be followed by
extreme measures like eating disorders or the use of steroids.

Media can also have a positive impact if it influences people to eat healthy
and exercise or portrays a variety of physical appearances.
Appendix 4: Song Analysis
Female Session: Song Analysis
o Materials
o A laptop to play the song for the analysis.
o Objective
o To enhance or promote self-acceptance in relation to body-image/physical
appearance.
o Purpose
o To discuss how the song promote self-acceptance.
o Instructions
1. Play a song that promotes self-acceptance

i.e. “Who Says” by Selena Gomez, “Born This Way” by Lady Gaga,
“Beautiful” by Christina Aguilera
2. After the song, discuss the following:

What is the singer trying to communicate to the audience?

What do you think the singer was feeling when they wrote or
performed the song?


How does this song make the students feel?

Does it make them feel better about themselves?

Does the impact the way the students perceive themselves?
Should there be more songs like this or maybe even a media event that
advocates positive body-image/self-acceptance?
3. This discussion attempts to help promote self-acceptance in students.

The song should communicate to students that they should accept
themselves for who they are regardless of what others say is the “ideal”
physical appearance.

The song should foster self-acceptance or portray a positive body-image
message.

This activity can also provide a role model for the young female students,
because they can relate to singer.
My part of the introduction
An adolescent’s perception of his/her physical appearance is a factor that can affect that
person’s overall self-image. Another word for the way a person perceives his/her physical
appearance is body-image (Gay, 2009). There are many factors that can affect a person’s bodyimage like family, culture, peers, and even media. These factors can have a positive or negative
effect on adolescents and their perception of their body-image. If this effect is negative, this can
cause adolescents to experience body dissatisfaction. Body dissatisfaction is simply not being
satisfied or happy with one’s own body (Jones, 2004). This unhappiness with one’s body can
lead to an adolescent feeling the need to change his/her body. Body dissatisfaction can become
so extreme that a person can develop body dysmorphic disorder (BDD). BDD causes a person to
have distorted views of their physical appearance, and it can also cause people to become
obsessed with areas they perceive as flaws (Gay, 2009). Being dissatisfied with one’s body may
lead to depression, eating disorders, excessive exercising, steroid use, a negative self-image, and
even a lower self-esteem (Jones, 2004).
Usually when some people think of the body-image they tend to associate it with females.
It is known that adolescent females are more likely to experience body dissatisfaction (Jones,
2004). According to Jones, this is because society stresses the importance of the “physical
attractiveness of women” (2004). This does not mean that males do not experience body
dissatisfaction or that they do not think about their physical appearance. A survey conducted by
Brown University, found that about 50 percent of normal weight men think about their
appearance frequently or all the time (Gay, 2009). It was also found that body dissatisfaction can
develop from internalized ideals of appearance for adolescent males, whereas social comparisons
are predictors of body dissatisfaction in adolescent females (Jones, 2004).
Having a workshop about self-image that takes time to discuss body-image/physical
appearance is important. The reason for this is because it is apparent that this is an issue of many
adolescents today. The effects of body dissatisfaction can be detrimental to an adolescent’s
overall self-image, because it begins to distort the way people see themselves. Hopefully,
discussing body-image and body dissatisfaction will help make high school students more aware
of its impact on people. This awareness will help students realize when they are encountering
body dissatisfaction and provide ways they can attempt to deal with this negative perception of
themselves.
References
Blankartist. (2009). Thin person looking in mirror [image]. Retrieved April 16, 2013, from:
http://www.dreamstime.com/stock-photos-thin-person-looking-mirror-image11989793
Gay, K. (2009). Body image and appearance. Plymouth, UK: Scarecrow Press, Inc.
Jones, D., C. (2004). Body image among adolescent girls and boys: A longitudinal study.
Developmental Psychology, 40(5), 823-835. doi: 10.1037/0012-1649.40.5.823