Reducing the impact of media images: An evaluation of the effectiveness of an air‐brushing educational intervention on body dissatisfaction

This experimental study seeks to explore the impact of media images on women's body dissatisfaction and to assess whether this impact could be reduced by an educational intervention describing the power of air‐brushing.

The study involved a 2×2 factorial design with two conditions: picture (thin vs fatter) and air‐brushing intervention (present vs absent). A total of 200 women completed measures of body dissatisfaction before and after viewing the experimental information.

The results showed that women felt consistently more dissatisfied with their bodies after viewing thin pictures and more satisfied after viewing fatter pictures. In addition, the air‐brushing intervention reduced the detrimental effect of viewing the thinner pictures but had no effect on the benefits of viewing the fatter pictures.

Media images may have a role to play in body dissatisfaction in women. But a simple intervention focusing on air‐brushing can facilitate a more critical perspective and thus provide a buffer against the influence of media images.