PHYSICAL SELF
• The physical self refers to the body in which we interface with our
environment and fellow being.
• It is a tangible aspect of the person that can be directly observed and
examined.
• It plays a role in defining who we are
• Our perception of our body affects how we think of ourselves
THE SELF AS IMPACTED BY THE BODY
• Body image refers to how a person perceives their own body;
particularly how attractive they believe they are.
• In the 1990s, body sociology established itself as a discipline.
o Bryan Turner coined the term "somatic society," which refers to the
body's newfound importance in modern society.
o The Body as a Site of Problematization and Expression
▪ Express identity
▪ Challenge societal norms
▪ Engage in political action
SELF–ESTEEM
- is a person’s overall evaluation of his or her own worth.
• Positive body image – associated with better overall well-being
• Negative body image – the great discontent we feel towards our body.
• Influenced by cultural standards, media, peers, and personal experiences
• Can significantly impact self-esteem and mental
WHAT DID PSYCHOLOGY DISCOVER ABOUT BEAUTY?
A. Research found that a person who is perceived as attractive makes more
money than a person of below-average looks.
B. Meanwhile, evolutionary psychology found that faces hold certain
fundamental and important characteristics that could indicate a person’s
quality as a romantic partner and as a mate.
PSYCHOLOGICAL ATTRACTIVENESS
HALO EFFECT
• Psychological phenomenon where attractive individuals are rated more
favorably for personality traits
• Can lead to jumping to conclusions about a person's capabilities based on
looks
• Affects various contexts: job interviews, elections, social interactions
• Question: Have you ever caught yourself making assumptions
about someone based on their appearance?
HORN EFFECT
• Opposite of the Halo Effect
• Tendency to give low ratings to a person due to one negative attribute
• Example: Assuming someone is unintelligent because they're not a good
English speaker
• Question: How can we combat our tendency to judge based on single
characteristics?
• David Hume: "Beauty is no quality in things
themselves; it exists merely in the mind which
contemplates them"
• Franz Brentano: Perception of beauty doesn't depend
solely on external sight
• Beauty can describe situations, sensations, or feelings
• Cultural definitions of beauty vary widely
CONCEPTS OF
BEAUTY
ANCIENT EGYPT:
Beauty is portrayed in men and
women with slim, high waist,
narrow hips and long black hair.
It is also emphasized by
dramatic cosmetics.
ANCIENT ROME:
Rome’s social elite
embraced increasingly
elaborate hairstyles
during the early imperial
period.
MAYAN CIVILIZATION:
Infant heads were reshaped by binding
boards to the skull to produce an
elongated look.
TANG DYNASTY, CHINA:
Tang women painted red,
black, and yellow beauty
marks on the forehead and
cheeks in the shape of
flowers, insects, and other
designs to hide blemishes or
imperfections.
During emperor Xuanzong's time, there
was a record called "Ten Eyebrow
Paintings," which documented ten
popular eyebrow styles. but it only
represents a fraction of the various
eyebrow styles.
SONG DYNASTY,
CHINA:
Chinese foot binding involved
crushing the arch of the foot at a
young age and painfully binding
it tightly for years, to achieve a
small 'desirable' foot size.
LATE MEDIEVAL
EUROPE:
Eyebrows were ruthlessly
plucked—as was the natural
hairline—to create the
fashionably high forehead
popular in medieval and early
Renaissance Europe.
ANCIENT JAPAN:
Ohaguro was the method of
dyeing teeth black, mostly
with a solution made of iron
filings and vinegar.
THAILAND (currently
practiced):
Known as 'giraffe women,' the
Kayan folk consider longnecked women highly
attractive, and apart from
stretching the neck to an
abnormal size, the rings also
give the illusion of a longer
than usual neck which is
revered in the region.
KENYA (currently
practiced):
Considered a beauty standard
among the Maasai tribe in
Kenya, men and women
elongate their earlobes using
thorns, stones, twigs, elephant
tusks, and more.
ETHIOPIA (currently
practiced):
The Mursi-Tribe and Lip-Plates
- Mursi women are famous for
their wooden lip plates – a
symbol of beauty and identity.
SUDAN (currently
practiced):
Men and women belonging to
the Dinka tribe in South Sudan
get their faces scarred when
they hit adolescence, as a mark
of courage for men and beauty
for women.
INDIA (currently
practiced):
Considered the most beautiful
tribal women, the Apatani
women from Arunachal
Pradesh would intentionally
make themselves look
unattractive by wearing huge
wooden plugs called yaping
hullo on their nose.
BODI TRIBE (currently
practiced):
The tribe where big is definitely
beautiful: Ethiopian men
compete to be the fattest in the
village by drinking a gruesome
mixture of blood and milk
while living in isolation for SIX
months.
COLLEGE OF TEACHER EDUCATION Secondary Education
Department
MENTAL HEALTH AND DISORDERS
BODY DYSMORPHIC DISORDER (BDD)
• Mental health condition involving obsessive focus on perceived
flaws in appearance
Characteristics:
• Imagined ugliness or preoccupation with slight defects
• Significant distress or impairment in daily functioning
• Excessive grooming, seeking reassurance, or avoiding social
situations
• Often requires professional mental health intervention
ANOREXIA NERVOSA
Characterized by:
• Restriction of energy intake
leading to significantly low body
weight
• Intense fear of gaining weight or
becoming fat
• Disturbance in the way one's
body weight or shape is
experienced
• Can be restricting type or bingeeating/purging type
• Highest mortality rate of any
mental disorder
BULIMIA NERVOSA
Characterized by:
• Episodes of binge eating
(consuming large amounts of
food)
• Followed by compensatory
behaviors (e.g., self-induced
vomiting, laxative abuse)
• Often maintains normal or
above-normal weight
• Can lead to serious health
complications
BINGE EATING
Characterized by:
• Recurrent episodes of eating
large quantities of food
• Feeling a lack of control during
binging
• Marked distress about binge
eating
• No regular compensatory
behaviors (unlike bulimia)
• Can lead to obesity and related
health problems
PROMOTING POSITIVE SELF-IMAGE
• Focus on health rather than appearance
• Practice self-compassion and positive self-talk
• Limit exposure to unrealistic media images
• Surround yourself with supportive people
• Engage in joyful movement and intuitive
eating
THE IMPORTANCE OF SELF-ACCEPTANCE
• Recognize your inherent worth beyond
appearance
• Celebrate your body's functionality and
uniqueness
• Practice gratitude for what your body can do
• Set goals based on personal values, not
societal pressures
• Remember: You are more than your physical
self and true beauty comes in all shapes,
sizes, and forms
WORKSHEET 1
WORKSHEET 1: Who is beautiful?
• Paste a photo of someone who you believe is good-looking. Then,
answer the questions that follow.
Name: __________________________
Description:
_________________________________
_________________________________
_________________________________
_________________________________
_________________________________
1. What stands out to you about what this image is trying to show you is
beautiful?
____________________________________________________________
__________
2. How do you think someone in the same racial, ethnic, historical, gender
or age
group as the person or people in the picture might be impacted by this
image?
____________________________________________________________
__________
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