College Men's Third-Person Perceptions about Idealized Body Image and Consequent Behavior

This study investigates college men's third-person perception in relation to body image factors using an experiment that involved a convenience sample of 148 male college students of Chinese descent in Singapore. The college men reported that the effects of media's idealized body images on female friends were greater than the effects on themselves. Their perception of media effects on the self was positively associated with their body dissatisfaction and intention to engage in body image behavior. Their perception of media effects on peers and the third-person differential between the self and friends were each negatively associated with their intention to adopt extreme body image behavior.