Body Image Development in Childhood: Parent, Peer & Media Influence

Student Learning Outcomes, Goals, Objectives:

Students successfully completing this course will be able to:

• describe foundational theories and findings of body image research and identify the major contributors to negative and positive body image in adulthood;
• describe the major milestones of body image development in early to late childhood;
• identify the nature of the influence of various aspects of child cognition and behavior, parenting behavior, peer interactions, and children’s media participation on body image development in early to late childhood;
• critically evaluate key theories and research on body image development;
• apply key theories and research to practical problems in body image development (e.g., developmentally appropriate messaging for children).

Course Grading Information:

Activity/Performance Measure	Percentage/Points
Quizzes	30%
Essay tests	30%
Special topics write-ups	20%
Independent Project	20%

Grading Scale:

Percentage	Letter Grade
93-100	A
90-92	A-
87-89	B+
83-85	B
80-82	B-
77-79	C+
73-76	C
70-72	C-
67-69	D+
63-66	D
60-62	D-
< 60	F

Attendance/Participation:

Attendance is optional. Students who miss class will be unable to participate/turn in assignments relevant to course material (i.e., test dates and special topics dates/write-ups require class attendance).

Course Materials Purchased by the Students:

Grogan, S. (2022). Body image: Understanding body dissatisfaction in men, women, and children (4th Ed). Routledge. https://www.routledge.com/Body-Image-Understanding-Body-Dissatisfaction-in-Men-Women-and-Children/Grogan/p/book/9781003100041