| Summary: | The present study is the first in literature to empirically test how both two dimensions of self-esteem—self-respect and self-efficacy—moderate the third-person perception of thin-ideal images in the mass media. Respondents who were high in self-respect and who were high in self-efficacy in the study exhibited greater third-person perception of thin-ideal images. In addition, as self-respect/self-efficacy decreased, “perceived effects of thin-ideal images in the mass media on self” increased.
In addition, the study has expanded the scope of behavioral component of third-person effects. Past studies usually assume one behavior outcome for undesirable or negative media messages. The present study has proposed two behavioral outcomes, including image-related outcome and support for restrictions of ideal thinness, in regard to thin-ideal images in the mass media. Results of analyses showed that “perceived effects of thin-ideal images on self” was a more reliable predictor of image-related outcome and that “perceived effects of thin-ideal images on others” could better predict support for restrictions of ideal thinness in the mass media.
The findings of both predictors of behavioral outcomes also indicate that in relation to a media message, individuals might evaluate the media effects at different levels and hence engage in more than one cognitive process. Therefore, using third-person perception to predict behavior may not merely commit a methodological error, but also simplify the possible cognitive processes and fail to solicit accurate results.
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