ABSTRACT
In a review of the body image literature Grogan notes the ubiquity of discontent: ‘It seems that some body dissatisfaction is the common experience of most people raised in Western culture’ (Grogan, 1999). Gender shapes this experience as women are more dissatisfied with their bodies than men. Furthermore, these dissatisfactions drive behaviour and lead to attempts at change. Dieting is commonplace, indeed regarded as the normative eating behaviour of American women (Polivy and Herman, 1987). The commercial sector that supports dieting, exercise and cosmetic surgical alteration is proliferating. The underlying collective belief is that the body is infinitely malleable and that with dieting or exercise, or the two in the correct combination, every woman can reach her ideal.
