Authors
Glen S Jankowski, Phillippa C Diedrichs, Heidi Williamson, Gary Christopher, Diana Harcourt
Publication date
2016/4
Journal
Journal of Health Psychology
Volume
21
Issue
4
Pages
550-561
Publisher
Sage Publications
Description
Body dissatisfaction can be significantly detrimental to wellbeing. Little is known about older adults’ body image, despite the fact that ageing causes unique bodily changes and that sociocultural pressures to resist these changes abound. We conducted six focus groups with a UK community sample of White British and South Asian older adults aged 65–92 years. Thematic analysis highlighted four themes: appearance indicates capability and identity; physical ability trumps appearance; felt pressures to age ‘gracefully’ while resisting appearance changes; and gender and cultural differences. These findings suggest that older adults’ body image can have important implications for their wellbeing and merits researchers’ attention.
Scholar articles
GS Jankowski, PC Diedrichs, H Williamson… - Journal of Health Psychology, 2016